The Doctor's Triple Trouble
by cheri1
Summary: 10/Rose with Donna. Fourth in the Dark Doctor series. The Doctor and Rose are traveling by themselves but soon they meet up with Donna and once again face off against the Dark Doctor and his brand new companions. FINISHED.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is the fourth in a series of stories I have about a dark alternate Doctor. the others in the series are Doppelganger, The Revenge of the Dark Doctor and the Dark Doctor's Master Plan.

Chapter One

"Now!" the Doctor said while he and Rose came in the front door of the TARDIS. "Where to next?"

He shut the door when Rose came inside, took off his coat and tossed it onto the nearest support beam before he headed to the console.

"Come on, Rose, give me some ideas," he said, looking at her. "Where d'ya wanna go next?"

Rose shrugged.

"I really have no idea," she said.

The Doctor stared at her.

"No idea? Rose Tyler, we have all of time and space to pick and choose from and you have no idea?"

"I…don't know. There's no place I really want to go."

His jaw dropped open so fast Rose was shocked it didn't hit the floor with a cartoonish bang.

"No place?" he said incredulously. "No place in the universe that you want to go to? Are you sure you're feeling well?"

"Well, I mean I just rather you picked something," she said.

"Rose, I've picked the last three places. It's your turn."

He stared at her impatiently while she racked her brain trying to figure out somewhere to go. The only thing she could think of was passages from Wicked, the book she had started reading last night. She found it hard to put it down and consequently stayed up half the night, a fact which was not lost on the Doctor since she had been yawning repeatedly since breakfast time.

"Well, I'm waiting," he said.

Rose sighed.

"Oz," she said flippantly.

"Interesting choice," the Doctor said nodding. "Don't know how interesting it'll be for you now though, what with the witch defeated and all."

Rose stared at him.

"I was kidding, Doctor," she said.

"You were? Because I wasn't."

"Right, Doctor. Pull the other one."

"No really, there really is an Oz."

Rose gave him a "Yeah, right," look.

"Seriously. Where do you think L. Frank Baum got his idea from? He accidentally fell through a rift through time and space and ended up there. That's where he got the idea for the whole over the rainbow thing."

"Yeah, right, Doctor."

"I'm serious. L Frank Baum traveled to Oz and saw it firsthand and when he got back over the rift with the help of Glinda, he wrote down his adventures."

"And what, you met L Frank Baum and he told you all this?"

"Yes, but I've also been there myself. Lovely place. Munchkins were a bit annoying with the high pitched voices and could have done without the flying monkeys jumping all over me but all and all, I highly recommend it."

"Doctor, you are so full of shit sometimes."

"I am not! Oz is an actual place! I've been there."

"You've been down the yellow brick road?"

"Yes. Although it's more a honey colored brick road than an actual yellow but yes, I have been down it."

"And seen the flying monkeys?"

"Yes, I believe I just told you they jumped all over me."

"Seen the wicked witch?"

"Yes, because right after her monkeys jumped all over me, I went to her castle to complain."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"And you melted her, I s'pose."

"Um…yes, but that was purely an accident. Elphaba started coughing and I ran to get her a glass of water and when I was running back, I tripped on the edge of her carpet, the water splashed all over her and she basically melted into the stone right in front of my eyes. After which, I made sure to get out of there very, very quickly before the Winkies killed me. Luckily they were too busy marching around in a circle saying "O wee O wee-o Um," to bother with me. Then I ran and ran and ran until I reached the rift and jumped back in it and got back into my TARDIS and flew away."

"Uh-huh and which life was this?"

"My sixth."

"Yeah, we'll I've seen pictures of your sixth life and your outfit certainly would fit in with the rest of Oz."

"Oi! No comments about the outfit!"

"And the witch's name was Elphaba?"

"Yes."

"Even though that wasn't her name until the Wicked novel came out."

"Well, where do you think Gregory Maguire got _his_ idea for that? He went over the rift and…"

"You know what; I've heard enough, thanks!" Rose said, holding up her hand. "Just pick something, alright?"

The Doctor shrugged.

"Fine, if you don't believe me, I'll just take you somewhere besides Oz," he said.

Rose snorted.

"Like where, Narnia?"

"Ah, now there's an interesting place. Mister Tumnus is quite charming. He makes the best tea and his house is quite cozy. Small, but cozy…though not as small as the Hobbits' houses. The Hobbits' houses are dinky and the Hobbits actually bite ya, contrary to popular belief. Yup, those little buggers like nothing more than to take a chunk out of your kneecaps if you give em half the chance. I remember when I was in the Shire, I had to beat Merry back with a stick so I didn't get my leg bitten off…course Pippin was just as bad. Those two just teamed up and went after me and I had to leg it all the way to Mount Doom just to get rid of…Rose?"

He looked around and noticed Rose had left the room. He grinned and chuckled to himself.

"Yup, sometimes there's nothing better than messing with Rose Tyler's mind," he said, punching in some coordinates.

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The alternate Doctor finished downing another pint of Bazev Lager while he sat in the crowded pub on Bazevia. He had managed to find another plastic surgeon that was able to fix most of the damage done by the acid although there were still a few tell-tale acid scars in a few spots. He also got a new eye made complete with laser. After he picked it up from the optometrist down the street, he decided to come inside and rest while he figured out what he wanted to do next. He knew one thing; he wanted to get revenge on the Doctor and his doggies for what they did to him. And he wanted revenge on the Master for double crossing him. He could kick himself for that. Why did he trust him when the original version had stabbed him in the back?

"I'll make them pay," he muttered as he stared down at the red colored lager in his stein. "I'll make them all pay."

"Who?"

He glanced up and saw a woman with dark blue skin and long white hair. She was wearing a black body suit. There was a leather belt around her waist. On it a blaster was nestled in a holster. Beside her was a humanoid woman with jet black skin and a panther head. She also had on a black bodysuit. The alternate Doctor eyed them warily.

"Mind if we sit down?" the blue woman said.

He grunted.

"I'll take that as a yes," the blue lady said, dryly.

The alternate Doctor took a drink of lager while the pair pulled out chairs and sat down across from him.

"Name's Mara, this is Sabessa," the blue lady said.

"The Doctor," he muttered.

"Doctor who?" Mara asked.

The alternate Doctor rolled his eyes and took another sip of lager.

"Not very friendly, are ya?" Mara asked.

"No, I'm not," he growled.

"Look, I'm sorry if we're botherin' ya," Mara said. "We just saw a handsome man sitting here and we thought we'd talk to ya. We'll go find somewhere else to sit."

He sighed.

"No, just sit. Maybe if I talk to someone, it might cheer me up."

Mara glanced at her friend.

"What's wrong?" Sabessa said.

"Well, I've been betrayed, humiliated, enslaved and defeated to put it succinctly."

"Wow," Mara said. "No wonder you came in here for a drink."

The alternate Doctor snorted and nodded.

"What happened?" Sabessa asked.

He sighed and took another sip before he recounted everything that had happened with him and the Doctor. The women, sensing it was going to be a long story, ordered a couple of lagers from a passing waitress and turned their attention back to their friend. When the waitress came back with the lagers, both of them sipped slowly while they gave the alternate Doctor their full attention. Finally, after a couple of hours, he finished telling them what had happened. The two women looked at each other.

"We've heard about this Doctor," Mara said. "My people call him The Widow Maker. We've heard tales about him since we were small, how he barges in and causes death and devastation wherever he goes and leaves before he can see how much damage he's done."

"Same with my people. We have also heard about him and how much of a menace he is. He constantly sticks his nose in where it's not wanted and expects people to do what he wants them to do whether they like it or not. We had some allies, the Ulutuls, that got destroyed in this Time War he fought and he was the one directly responsible for their deaths. He lured the Daleks to their home world and fought them there and by the time they got done, the planet was a wasteland and the Ulutuls starved to death while they just went on to the next planet and fought their battle there. We swore someday we would get even with him for doing that to our friends."

The alternate Doctor stared at her.

"You want revenge on the Doctor?" he asked.

"In the worst way. If I had him here, I would torture him slowly. Rake my claws across his entire body and watch as the blood poured from the wounds. Then I would let him heal and do it again…and again and again until I finally let the bastard die."

"Interesting. How about you? You said he was The Widow Maker. Do you want revenge on him?"

"I have no reason for revenge but I would kill him just to rid the universe of the scum."

"And do you have any special way you would do it?" the alternate Doctor asked, intrigued.

"My people are shape shifters. I can change my appearance to resemble anyone. Plus my people are fierce warriors. We have been taught battle skills from the time we could walk. We are a proud warrior race and he would be no match for me."

The alternate Doctor looked from one to the other and suddenly got an idea.

"You know, I realized I've been going about this all long. You see, up until now I've preferred to go it alone except for the times I had the pleasure of the Time Lord's females in my thrall. But they were merely playthings for my amusement. I never entertained the idea of taking on companions as he does. Until now. Because I see that in order to beat him at his own game, I must have help. I must have a couple of companions to match his little doggies. So, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind joining forces with me and becoming my companions and together we will make him and his little doggies suffer. How 'bout it?"

The two women glanced at each other.

"What'd ya think, Bess?" she asked Sabessa.

"I'll jump at any chance to get back at the Doctor. I say we take him up on his offer."

Mara nodded.

"Alright, you got yourself a deal."

The alternate Doctor smiled.

"Excellent. And together we will make the Doctor and his ape's lives a living hell."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Donna Noble let out an angry sigh while she stomped out the door. Another temp job gone. The man had only needed a secretary for a few days to handle a sudden pile-up of paperwork but he had never told her that and neither did the agency. She was under the impression that she was going to land a full time job there until he came up to her desk and with a pleasant smile told her that he didn't need her anymore. Resisting the urge to wipe the smile off his face, Donna plastered a smile on her own face and politely thanked him for his time since any caustic remark might possibly prevent her from getting another job. It had been the third job in a month, none of them lasting more than a few days. She was tired, frustrated and sick of her mother jumping down her throat the moment she walked through the door. And she knew the moment she got home it would start all over again. An hour, maybe two, of her mother yelling at her that she couldn't keep doing this forever and it was time to go out and get a proper job and she didn't know what she was going to do with her because half the time she was utterly useless. Wilf tried to intercede, but most of the time he was shouted down by his overbearing daughter and he retreated outside to sit at his telescope and stare at the constellations in peace.

On the way back to her car, she walked into a small coffee shop and ordered a coffee, figuring it would calm her frazzled nerves not to mention it brought her more time until she had to go home and face her mother again. She sat there in silence sipping her coffee watching while people passed by the huge window beside her table. She stared at them laughing and smiling and joking with one another and felt envious. Seemed like the more her life fell apart, the happier everyone else looked. It was the story of her life. Everyone else was off having a party while she sank even lower into the depths of misery and despair. Even her friends preferred to spend time with others these days to avoid her mood swings and sullen pity parties. She couldn't blame em. She knew she hadn't been a barrel of laughs but for the past year, ever since Christmas, her mind had only been on one man. Trouble was, she doubted if his mind was on her since she had yet to see him return to collect her and save her from her terrible mistake.

The moment she saw him rise into the air in his TARDIS she thought that would be the starting point of her whole new life. She was gonna say goodbye to Chiswick, take off around the world and see the sights, gain a whole new perspective on dusty planet Earth. But unfortunately, her lofty dream of bumming it around the world came crashing down when reality set back in and she was soon regretting turning down Alien Boy's offer of taking her with him to see the stars. Especially after her mother began to nag her about finding a proper job after HC Clements was dissolved. And she tried to find a proper job, she really did, but there just wasn't anything out there. But her mother, anxious to get her out of her house for good, didn't understand that and there were times Donna had to stop and count to ten because she felt like she was seconds away from punching her in the face.

She finished up her coffee, threw away the cup and walked back out. She reached her car, opened the door and was about to get in when she noticed a sign in a plate glass window across the street.

HELP WANTED

SECRETARIES  
MUST KNOW AT LEAST 50 WPM.  
INQUIRE WITHIN.

Donna stared at it for a moment wondering whether or not she should apply. Figuring she might as well go for it, she slammed the door, looked both ways and hurried across the street. She entered and saw a small office with several cubicles. There was one desk up front and a pleasant looking twenty something year old woman with shoulder length bobbed brown hair smiled at her.

"May I help you?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm interested in applying for the position," she said, gesturing to the sign in the window.

"Certainly, fill this out," she said, handing her an application on a wooden clipboard.

Donna thanked her and turned. There were several chairs in front of the window and she walked to an empty one near the wall. She glanced over and noticed a young blonde woman was sitting two seats down quietly filling out the application. She gave her an appraising look before she dug through her purse, pulled out a pen and began to fill everything out.

While she was writing, she noticed the woman finishing up out of the corner of her eye. She glanced at her while she walked up and handed the clipboard and application back to the receptionist. The receptionist looked it over and smiled.

"Thank you, Miss Tyler; we'll expect you back here at 8 a.m. tomorrow for your training."

Donna mouthed a curse and slammed the pen down on the clipboard while the blonde turned and walked back out. She threw her pen in her purse and with a sigh, walked back up to the receptionist.

"All done?" the lady said, taking it from her.

Before she could say something, the lady was looking it over. She frowned and glanced up at Donna.

"This isn't filled out, Miss Noble," she said.

"Yeah, I know, you just gave the bleedin' job to Blondie there," Donna said. "I was handin' ya back your clipboard."

"We have several openings, Miss Noble."

"You do?"

"Yes, there are still some openings if you're interested."

"What is this place? You do telemarketing or something?" Donna said suspiciously.

"No Miss Noble, we're just starting up. We manufacture home computers and we need qualified secretaries to help process orders from clients that order over the phone. The pay is 15 quid an hour if you're interested."

"15 quid an hour? I'll go door to door and deliver the computers myself for that."

The woman smiled at her and watched while she took the clipboard and walked back to the chair.

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After the woman told her to come back at 8 a.m. for training, Donna felt far better than she had before she went in the building. She had a job, a good paying job that she was determined to hold onto with both hands so her mother would finally get off her back once and for all.

Later that night at supper, Donna told her mother and granddad what had happened. Wilf was overjoyed that she found a 15 quid an hour job but her mother wasn't as enthusiastic.

"You just better make sure you keep this one, Donna. Because if you get sacked again, you can go find somewhere else to live. You're too old to be living at home like this. Either you start paying me rent or you can get a flat of your own. I'm not a hotel and I'm not your maid."

"Sylvia, for God's sake, leave her alone!" Wilf said.

"I'm just saying, Dad, that she is 35 now and it's time for her to get out on her own instead of relying on family. I'm getting too old to support her. She needs to start getting her head out of the clouds and face reality. She's been this way ever since she met that man at Christmas. That weirdo with the exploding Christmas tree that ruined our reception."

"It wasn't the Christmas tree that exploded, it was the decorations and it wasn't his fault," Donna said angrily.

"Whatever. I've had it up to here with you. Your father just passed away recently and I've had to deal with that heartache without adding your odd friend and you on top of it. I'm warning you, Donna, this had better be it. You better get down on your knees tonight and pray you hold on to this job because I have no qualms about shoving ya out the door if you lose it."

Donna sighed angrily, slammed her hand down on the table and got up. Angrily, she stomped out of the kitchen while Wilf yelled at his daughter for upsetting her.

She hurried out of the house and ran up to the spot where her granddad took his telescope. She sank down to the ground and once she was alone and out of view, she began to cry uncontrollably, completely tired of life and living, wanting nothing more than to go back in time like the Doctor and correct her mistake so she could be up among the stars traveling instead of stuck on Earth with no real future and a mother who constantly made her life hell. She wept hard letting all the built up stress and heartache and fear out in a good cleansing cry. She was crying so hard she didn't realize someone was rubbing her back at first.

"Donna," Wilf said, gently. "Donna, my lucky star, don't cry, please?"

"I can't help it, Granddad," she sobbed. "I'm tired. I'm tired of all of this."

"I know, sweetheart, I know," Wilf soothed.

His heart ached to see his granddaughter in this state and he wished he could do more for her than offer her some tea from his thermos. He rubbed her back and smiled when Donna's crying subsided into sobs and she was able to get herself composed again. When she stopped crying and was sitting there sniffing, he poured her the tea and she accepted it gratefully.

"Thank you," she murmured.

Wilf set up his folding chair and set down in it.

"Feel better?" he said.

She nodded.

"Yeah, I did need to do that."

He nodded.

"I figured that. Donna, I know it seems like everything is hopeless but it really isn't."

"I know that, Granddad, but it's just so overwhelming sometimes. There are days I feel like I can't go on and I don't feel like getting out of bed."

"Well, I don't either but when you get to be my age, you feel like that for an entirely different reason," Wilf said with a wink.

Donna laughed at that and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Donna, you may not believe this but I know what it's like to go through a period of hopelessness. Everybody has em, even your mother. There are times when everyone would probably rather chuck it in and never wake up than go on but it takes courage to face the day and tackle life head on and that's what ya gotta do. You gotta get out there and make your dreams come true."

Donna let out a ruthful laugh.

"Dreams? I don't have any dreams."

"Sure ya do. Everyone has a dream, even me and I'm older than the dirt at my feet."

He smiled when Donna let out another laugh.

"I do have one dream," she said.

"Let's hear it then."

She took a sip of tea and looked up at Orion.

"I want to go up there and travel among the stars," she said, pointing to it.

Wilf smiled.

"Better pick another dream, Donna. I don't think you'll live long enough to get through university and become an astronaut," he teased.

He smiled when Donna laughed and slapped his knee playfully. She sobered up and looked back up.

"No, I don't need to do that, Granddad; I already have a way up there. Problem is I rejected it once and I doubt it's coming back around again."

"How can you be so sure?" Wilf said. "You seem so sure of everything, Donna. How do you know this magical transport isn't gonna come back 'round and pick you up again?"

"Because I told him no."

Wilf perked up.

"Him? It's a man?"

She smiled.

"Yeah, a man. A completely daft, thin, little wisp of a man who has the most wonderful blue box in the entire universe. A magical blue box that has the power to go anywhere you want so you can see all the wonderful things…"

She trailed off when she realized how stupid it sounded coming from her own mouth and she looked at Wilf expecting him to snort and tell her to get her head out of the clouds but he only smiled wider and nodded.

"Go on, Donna, this box goes all over the universe?" he said.

Donna smiled as her heart filled with love for the old man.

"Yeah, goes anywhere you want in time and space. He offered to take me along as his companion but I told him no like the barmy idiot I am and now I'm stuck taking a secretarial job in Harrow so my mum will stop nagging me night and day. But I can't help thinking that there's something more out there for me, ya know? That maybe I was meant to travel with this man."

"Well, if you're meant to travel with him then he'll be back to get ya," Wilf said. "God works in mysterious ways, sweetie. I'm betting right now things are falling into place and you're about to meet this man of yours again."

Donna smiled.

"I hope you're right, Granddad."

"Course I'm right, I'm your elder, aren't I? We're supposed to be all knowing and sage and infallible, ya know."

She laughed when he put his hand on her head.

"You've always been special, Donna. You are destined to be more than some anonymous secretary typin' and filin' in London. You just keep on hoping and keep those stars in your eyes and that man will be bumping into ya sooner than ya think."

A tear fell down Donna's cheek and she wiped it away while Wilf gave her back a rub.

"I love you, Granddad," she said to him.

"I love you too, Donna. And I'm proud of you," he said.

"Thanks," she said.

He nodded and the two of them sat together staring up at the stars far above them.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The next morning Donna woke early. She showered, dressed in a black skirt, white blouse, black jacket and black heels with flesh colored hose. She ate a quick breakfast, fixed herself up and brushed her teeth. She was determined to wow everyone at the new job and secure her position there. Once she was finished with everything, she grabbed her purse and the car keys and headed out the door. She drove there, hoping and praying the whole way that things would go in her favor for once.

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"Good morning, Miss Noble, Mister Lucifer is waiting for you," the receptionist said, pointing to a cubicle at the back.

"Lucifer?" Donna muttered to herself while she walked back there. "Wonderful name for a boss. I bet he'll be fun to work for."

She reached the cubicle and looked inside. There was a small white table with several chairs around it and sitting near the wall on the right side was the blonde she saw the day before.

"Hello," the blonde said, nodding.

"Hi, I'm Donna."

"I'm Rose."

"Nice to meet ya," Donna said, sliding into the first seat on the left. "Are we the only people who applied?"

"Dunno," Rose said, shrugging.

"Well, I'm hoping this'll be long term," Donna said to her. "I need a job badly."

Rose smiled and nodded politely. They looked over when a thin man in his early thirties walked up to them. He was dressed in a black pin striped suit with a white shirt and blood red tie. He had a small goatee and an oily smile.

"Ladies, welcome, to Lucifer Industries," he said. "I'm Simon Lucifer, the CEO. It's nice to meet you both. You're…"

"Donna."

"Rose."

He nodded.

"Very good. Well, follow me and I'll drive you to the training site."

"Wait, drive? We're not training here?" Donna said.

"No."

"Well, let me drive my car then. I have it parked right outside," Donna said.

"I'm afraid that's not possible. We need to get special tags made for your vehicles in order for them to be allowed on company property. It's just this one time, ladies, I assure you. Now if you'll follow me, I'll take you to my car and we can get started."

He stood and waited for them to get up. Rose and Donna glanced at each other and slowly rose from their seats.

"Excellent, follow me," he said.

He walked away and Donna leaned over to Rose.

"First day of work and we're gettin' into a strange man's car?" she whispered to him. "I don't like this, Rose, do you?"

"No, but…just stay by me, yeah?"

"Stay by you? What are you gonna do? Karate chop em if he tries to rape us or something?"

"Ladies, I'm waiting!" they heard him call out.

"Just…stay close, Donna," Rose said.

Donna shrugged, grabbed her purse and followed her. Lucifer was standing by the door smiling at them.

"Follow me," he said to them.

Donna noticed Rose reach for something inside her purse but rather than take something out of it she just withdrew her empty hand and put it down at her side. They went outside and went across the parking lot to a black Mercedes with tinted windows. Donna stared at it and red flags went off in her mind. She stopped.

"Um…listen…"

Both Rose and Lucifer stopped and looked at her.

"I've…changed my mind. I'm not interested in this job anymore," Donna said, backing away. "I mean I'm sure you're a nice bloke and all but this isn't for me."

"Donna, it's 15 quid an hour," Lucifer said to her.

"Yeah and that's lovely but I'll look elsewhere, thanks."

She turned around to go back to her car and that's when she caught a glimpse of him peeking around the back of the building at them. She saw the shocked look on his face that mirrored her own but he quickly ducked back behind the building before he was seen.

"Doctor?" Donna murmured while she began to move towards him.

She was so preoccupied with walking towards the building that she didn't realize Lucifer had run up behind her until she felt the truncheon coming down on her skull and then everything turned dark.

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Donna groaned while she slowly came to.

"Donna? Donna? Are you okay?" she heard Rose asking.

" I will be once my bleedin' head stops throbbin' and I can see again," she muttered.

She opened her eyes and noticed she was secured to a high back chair with leather straps. Rose was sitting next to her, also secured in a high back chair. She was staring at Donna with concern.

"I'm sorry, Donna, I was hopin' I'd be the only one to apply," Rose said. "I wasn't countin' on you bein' here."

"Yeah, well, right about now I'm thinking what a mistake it was to apply," Donna said.

"He wanted me to come in here by myself so he could track them. He's known about Lucifer, what's been goin' on. But we didn't know where his headquarters was," Rose said.

"He?"

Then she pieced it together.

"The Doctor, you mean?"

Rose frowned.

"You know him?"

Donna stared at her.

"Rose," she muttered.

"Yeah?" Rose said.

Her eyes widened.

"His Rose? The Rose he lost?"

Rose stared at her.

"Did…you know him, Donna?"

"I helped him a little over a year ago at Christmas."

Rose's eyes widened.

"Donna Noble?"

"Yeah. He told you about me?"

"He told me the story. Told me about the Racnoss and how you helped him defeat it," Rose said.

"I didn't do anything. He did it all," Donna said softly.

"You made him leave though."

Donna looked at her.

"How'd ya mean?" she said.

"You made him leave. You told him he had to go. You snapped him to his senses because he was grievin' over me and didn't realize the water was rising as fast as it was. If you hadn't said anything, you and him might have drowned. He's grateful to ya for doin' that and so am I."

Donna was stunned.

"I had no idea I did that. Saved his life, I mean."

"Yes, you did. He was devastated after I went through the void."

"Yeah, I knew that, knew he'd lost you, I mean."

"Well, I hate to say it but for the longest time he had a kind of…death wish," Rose said, lowering her eyes to the floor.

Donna stared at her sadly.

"How'd ya get back then?" she asked.

"It's a long story and I'm sure I won't have time to tell it now," Rose said.

She lowered her voice to almost a whisper.

"But there's a tracking device in my purse. If he took it with him when he took us then the Doctor will be able to track us and help us escape."

"And if he didn't take the purse?"

Rose gave her a determined look.

"Then you and I improvise and get the hell outta here by ourselves," she said to her.

Donna nodded. They shut up when they heard a door open behind them. Lucifer walked up between the chairs.

"Welcome, ladies, to your training session," he said with an evil smile.

"What are ya gonna do to us?" Donna demanded.

"Like I said, Miss Noble, we're going to train you and Miss Tyler to work for our company here. Of course we're doing something a bit more significant than taking orders for computers. No, our work is far more important than that," he said.

"You'll never get away with this!" Rose said.

"Oh? And how did you arrive at that conclusion, Miss Tyler?"

"Because Donna and I have a secret weapon!"

"Yeah, we do!" Donna said.

Lucifer laughed.

"You don't scare me. You can threaten me with this secret weapon all you want but it won't work. In a few moments you'll be a couple of mindless slaves and then you'll both have what you've always wanted. Job security…for the rest of your lives!"

He laughed when both Rose and Donna struggled against their bonds.

"That won't do you any good, my loyal servants. I have you secured tightly in these chairs and you're not going anywhere. And as for this so-called secret weapon, show it to me. I dare you."

He paused and waited with his hands behind his back but nothing happened.

"Well, where is it, my slaves? Where is your salvation? I'm waiting for it."

He chuckled when they stared at him in silence.

"You see, I chose to call your bluff and this is what happens. You both remain my captives and in a few minutes you will be hypnotized permanently. And now because you failed to show me your secret weapon, I will show you what will become of you."

They continued to struggle while he walked to a door at the back of the room. Rose desperately tried to call to the Doctor through their mind link but he didn't answer back. She was beginning to panic, wondering if something had happened to him. She had allowed herself to be knocked out before Donna so that Lucifer would bring her here. She knew the Doctor had been behind the building watching them, what if someone had spotted him, snuck up behind him and knocked him out too? What if he was lying somewhere knocked out and helpless in the building and by the time he got free it would be too late for all of them? Rose's heart raced and she sent up a silent prayer that the Doctor was okay and would help them.

Just then Lucifer walked back between the chairs with a brainwashed "slave". Both women stared at the Doctor in shock. He was standing there between them, rigid with a blank look on his face.

"This is what you'll look like when you are finished with the process," Lucifer said, pointing to him.

For one heart-stopping moment, Rose thought the Doctor actually had been brainwashed before them but when Lucifer turned his back for a moment, the Doctor glanced at her, smiled a warm smile and winked. He glanced at Donna and stared at her with wide eyes before he quickly faced forward with the blank look on his face. Lucifer stared at him for a moment and then moved to another door on the left side of the room. The Doctor stuck his tongue out at him and flipped him off while Rose fought to keep from laughing. She bit her lip when the Doctor once again stared at Donna with wide eyes.

"Will you quit that?" Donna growled softly.

He glanced at Lucifer. He had opened the door and was rummaging around inside the room. He looked at Donna and bent down.

"What are you doing here, Donna?" he whispered to her.

"I was looking for a job," Donna whispered back.

"Um…no jobs here unless you wanna be a mindless slave."

"Yeah, I figured that out already, Space Boy, thanks."

"Never fear, I'll have you both outta here in a mo," the Doctor whispered.

He quickly went rigid and stared ahead blankly while Lucifer pushed a tall thin waist high console out of the room. The top of the console had a speaker on it surrounded by switches and dials and buttons. He pushed it until it was a few feet directly in front of Rose and Donna. Then he stopped and smiled at his captives.

"This device emits a special high frequency sound wave that will put you into a state of hypnosis. If I leave it on long enough you will become like our friend here and then I will be able to give you any command I want. And then you will be put to work."

"Doing what?" Donna demanded.

He chuckled.

"Building biological weapons to annihilate every living thing on this miserable rock. Then my kind can come in, strip it of its resources and then break it apart until it's a bunch of tiny hunks of dirt and boulders for use in building projects on our planet. See, it may surprise you to learn that I'm not like you. Oh no, I'm an alien from outer space and you, my brainless homo sapiens are about to join a greater, better cause than being a couple of secretaries for a computer company. Of course when it's finished, you and all of the other workers will be put inside the missile that will carry the weapon and you'll die when the biological agent is released. I hate to tell you this, but we have no real use for you on our planet except as freak show curiosities and we already have several humans filling that position. So, now that you know what your duties entail, let's get started with the training, shall we? Slave, come to me."

They watched while the Doctor walked over to him.

"Stand here by the machine since I need to brainwash you as well."

He reached up underneath his jacket and pulled a revolver out of his trouser waistband.

"I know all my slaves. I've indoctrinated them personally and I've never seen you before," he said, pointing the gun at his head.

"Blast and I was hoping you'd cooperate with me and surrender without a fight," the Doctor said. "Ah well, it's a fair cop, you've seen through my little ruse. Bravo. Now…why don't we discuss freeing my friends, freeing all the slaves, dismantling the bomb and having you leave this miserable rock, as you put it, before I get really, really cross?"

Lucifer snorted.

"You don't scare me. You're just as pathetic as the two females. So on your knees, slave, and accept your fate along with them."

The Doctor put his hands behind his back and rocked back and forth on his heels.

"Well? Do as I say or all of you will die!"

"Do you know who I am?" the Doctor said.

"I don't care who you are. In a moment you'll be a pathetic little slave, now on your knees."

"I said, do you know who I am?"

Lucifer sighed.

"Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor, the last of the Time Lords."

He stared at him for a moment and then snorted.

"Impossible, the Time Lords were a myth."

The Doctor brought his hand up, pinched the back of it and lowered his hand back to his side.

"Wow, I'm pretty solid seeing how I'm a myth and all," he said to him.

"You don't scare me. I don't fear you."

He neared closer to him and stared at him intently.

"If you don't stop what you're doing and free everyone and leave, I will give you a very good reason to fear me," he said in a low voice.

He stared at Lucifer intently while Rose and Donna watched silently. Suddenly Lucifer lunged at the on switch on the console. The Doctor lunged forward caught his hands and jerked the hand with the gun up to the ceiling when he tried to put a bullet in his head. The Doctor fell with him to the ground and they rolled around wrestling for a few minutes. Finally, the Doctor managed to wrench the gun out of his hand and used the butt of it to knock him out. He sighed while he stood up and looked at his friends.

"Are you alright?" he asked them.

"Apart from the severe headache, yeah," Donna said.

The Doctor grinned at her.

"You haven't changed a bit, have ya, Donna Noble?" he said to her.

"Just get us outta here, Alien Boy," Donna replied.

The Doctor chuckled and quickly freed them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After making sure the rest of the slaves further back in the building were alright and the bomb had been deactivated, the Doctor made an anonymous call to the police to let them know what had happened and to tell them to bring UNIT in to take care of the bomb and paramedics to take the former slaves to the hospital for evaluation. The Doctor and his friends grabbed Lucifer's unconscious body and they carried him out of the building. They carried him towards the TARDIS he had parked nearby after tracking them to the building.

"You think everyone will be alright?" Rose asked while they carried Lucifer.

"I think so. If UNIT is there they can take the victims after they've been treated for any injuries, work with them to counteract the effects of the hypnosis and bring them back to normal. And they can dismantle that bomb they made and make sure it doesn't harm anyone. As for this git, I think a nice long stay on a prison planet will do the trick."

He smiled at Donna.

"If you don't mind, we'd like it if you helped us get him inside the TARDIS. Then once that's done you can be on your way and…"

"No."

The Doctor and Rose stared at her.

"No?" the Doctor said.

"Doctor, I…I wanna come with you."

He frowned.

"I thought you didn't want to come with me. I frightened you, remember?"

"Well, I've had over a year to think about it and I decided that I was a bit too hasty, not to mention stupid. So could I come with you?"

The Doctor looked at Rose.

"Rose? Wanna take another on board with us?"

Rose smiled.

"Sure, why not? More the merrier, right?"

He smiled at her.

"You're in…unless you wanna decline again."

"Not on your life. I'm tagging along this time," Donna said to him.

The Doctor chuckled and smiled warmly at her while they walked with Lucifer towards the TARDIS.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

After Donna took the car back to her house and told her mum she was moving out and staying with Neris for the time being, she packed a couple of suitcases worth of clothes, said goodbye to Wilf and headed back to the TARDIS which was parked a half block away on a side street.

In the month since she became a full time companion, Rose had taken her under her wing and shown her the ropes. Donna was impressed with the younger woman's courage and calmness in the face of danger. Rose turned out to be a great teacher and both Rose and the Doctor were impressed with her. She and Rose soon become best friends and she quickly forgot her old life as a temp, determined never to return to her ho-hum life. She didn't know about Rose but she knew she was going to travel with the Doctor for the rest of her life now.

During their downtime in the TARDIS, Rose would tell Donna about some of her adventures which impressed Donna even more. Hearing about what this woman, who was barely out of her teens, had seen and done filled her with both fear about what she might encounter and anticipation knowing that she was finally going to live a life that was more than just filing and typing.

One morning, Rose finally got around to telling her about how she had returned from the other universe. The two friends were sitting across from each other at the kitchen table, drinking tea while the Doctor made some repairs to his console. Rose's Zeebot, Puff, was sitting on her shoulder singing contentedly while she fed him bits of carrot. Eventually the creature became tired, closed its eyes and slept there while Rose talked on about what happened to bring her back from the other universe and what had happened since then. Donna was flabbergasted to learn that there was an evil version of the Doctor roaming around the universe. She sat, spellbound, while Rose talked about her and Martha escaping from him, about their being enslaved with the chips in their heads and about the year that never was. Donna was especially fascinated with that and it made her wonder what she had been doing and whether she lived or died during that year. Her blood ran cold when Rose described the Doctor being aged and the torment both of them had endured at the sadistic hands of both the Master and the other Doctor. Sadness overwhelmed her when she heard her friend talk about being raped by him and she felt her blood boil. Rose sighed when she finished describing it.

"To this day the Doctor still feels guilty about that," she said. "Even though I keep telling him over and over there was nothing he could have done to protect me since he was unconscious when it happened. But…he does that, Donna. He blames himself for every little thing that happens to me even when things are out of his control."

"And he won't listen if you tell him otherwise?"

Rose let out a mirthless laugh.

"In one ear, out the other. I could tell him it wasn't his fault until I'm blue in the face, won't change a thing. He's very protective of the people he travels with, not just me but Martha and now you."

"He doesn't have to be protective of me, I can take care of myself," Donna said.

"I can as well but that doesn't stop him from wanting to shield us from every little danger. It's odd because that's what he loves. The man will charge headlong into danger but at the same time he wants us to be safe even when though he wanted us to come along with him. It's odd but I guess it makes sense to him in his own head. But I can't complain, I love travelin' with him, wouldn't give it up for anything. I had my fill of "normal" life back in the other world and there's no way in hell I'm goin' back to that."

"You and me both," Donna said, snorting.

They sipped their tea while Rose finished telling her about the year that never was. Donna stared at her when she described him being shrunk down and put in a birdcage.

"Okay, I'm having a hard time picturing him as a little elf in a birdcage," she said when she laughed.

"It was surreal. It would have been funny any other time but I knew the Master meant business," she said. "I'm just glad he didn't decide to do somethin' like stomp on him and break every bone in his body."

Donna nodded.

"So how did he get outta that?" she asked.

Rose finished telling the story.

"This Martha ended up going around the entire world?"

Rose nodded.

"Well, no wonder she wanted to go back home."

"It wasn't just that. It was her family as well. They'd been tortured and traumatized and she stayed behind for the time being to take care of them."

"I wonder what I was doing then? I wish I knew."

"No, Donna, you don't. Be glad you don't remember," Rose said. "I'd give anything not to remember that year."

Donna's heart ached at that. She reached across the table and took her friend's hand. She could see she was trying to be nonchalant about it all but her eyes held all the pain and suffering she had endured. She also noticed how much older her eyes looked than the rest of her body and she wondered if eventually hers would look the same way.

"So where is this other Doctor now?" she said, sipping her tea.

"God only knows, I just hope he finally learned his lesson and stays far away from us. I know the Doctor will beat him senseless if he threatens me again."

Donna nodded.

"I imagine so; I know how much he cares for you. I could tell that when I first met him."

"Did…he talk about me much?" Rose asked.

"Um, he mentioned you a couple of times. I finally learned your first name just before he left me but I could tell he was brokenhearted the entire time. I s'pose my being pulled into the TARDIS right after he got done saying goodbye to you didn't help matters much. Not to mention I was a bit of a bitch towards him and looking back on it now, I'm sorry I was but I was in the middle of my wedding and the next thing I knew I was in here. I thought my friend Neris had pulled a prank on me."

Rose chuckled.

"Don't feel bad, I would have felt the same way if I'd been in your place," she said. "I always wondered. I asked him about it and he told me about meeting you but I could tell he was leavin' out some things and I knew it had to do with me. He doesn't think I can read him like a book but I can. I've traveled with him for almost three years now and I've been around him long enough to know when he's not tellin' me the whole truth about somethin'. He pretends he's this mysterious, hard to suss out individual, but he's really not. Not to me anyway. But it's the same way with me. I can't hide much from him either. We've been through so much, Donna, that we just know one another now. I s'pose in time you'll be the same way. You and he will have to bond on some level in order to work together as a team but I'm sure you'll eventually be able to figure out what he's thinking as well."

Donna nodded.

"Just as long as it's him and not this evil double of his."

"I don't think you'll have to worry. I think we finally got rid of him. Especially since the Master betrayed him as well. But even if he does return, his face is messed up now by acid so it won't be a problem telling the two of em apart anymore."

She sipped her tea while she stared off into space.

"What is it?" Donna asked.

Rose smiled.

"I say that, Donna, but to be honest, I really don't quite believe that he's gone for good. It's odd but even though he kept calling me a doggie and told me I was lower than dirt, he seemed to be obsessed with me as well as the Doctor. I know he wants the Doctor dead because the Doctor's defeated him but with me…I don't know, he says he despises me and would never have anything to do with me since I'm an "ape" but he kept insisting I stay at his side and then there was the...well, you know, but I have a feeling if he does return it won't just be because he's wanting revenge on the Doctor."

"The Doctor won't let that happen," Donna said.

"I know, that's why I know the moment he comes within sight of me the Doctor will have his guts for garters. I'm praying he doesn't but part of the reason I told you all of this is because he's still out there and I don't want you going up to him thinking he's our Doctor because the man is nothing but trouble and he'll hurt you without batting an eye," she said.

"I appreciate that but I hope I never have to meet him he sounds like bad news, Donna said.

Unknown to them, the Doctor was standing right outside the kitchen door listening. He was going to get a quick snack but when he got to the door he heard Rose talking to Donna about his double and decided to listen in. He'd been listening ever since she described him and his double battling the Slithra and had listened to Donna's comments about it and about the year that never was. His hearts ached when he heard Rose telling Donna about her rape and they ached even further when he heard her say that she would give anything not to remember. He had often wished the same thing but he knew he had no choice. In the end she had to return with him to keep the chip from returning to her head and ending back up in the other Doctor's possession. His blood boiled when she heard her voice her fears about him returning and he made a silent vow that his nemesis would never lay his hands on her again or lay his hands on Donna. Donna had never met him and he was determined to keep it that way.

When she heard Rose finish talking about the other Doctor, he quietly snuck back to the console before they realized he was there.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

By the time Rose and Donna decided to come to the console room, the Doctor was back under the console working. While he worked, his mind kept drifting to what Rose had said and he wondered if they would see the other Doctor again. No matter how much he tried not to think of his adversary, he kept invading his thoughts so he was glad when his two girls finally provided him with a distraction.

"Well, well, come out here, have you? Get bored doing women things and talking women talk?"

"Well, we were wondering if we could go somewhere," Rose said.

"And where would that somewhere be?" the Doctor said, getting up from the floor.

"Dunno, got any good ideas?"

"Oh, I have oodles and oodles of good ideas," the Doctor said, patting her on the head. "You silly girl, thinking I don't know somewhere good to take you. How daft of you. But I'll forgive your momentary loss of sanity."

Donna giggled when Rose rolled her eyes.

"Now…" the Doctor said, cupping her face.

Rose noticed him pausing with his hands on her face.

"What? What is it?" she asked.

Her eyes widened when the Doctor giggled and squeezed her cheeks until her lips looked like a fish. He eased up and did it again while Donna laughed.

"What the hell are ya doin'?" Rose said when he eased up again.

"Makin' fish faces for my amusement."

Donna bent over laughing when he did it again.

"Anyone ever tell ya how incredibly cute you look with a fishy face?"

"Doctor!" Rose said while he laughed hysterically.

"Okay, okay, I'll refrain from fishy faces," he said.

"Thank you," she said. "I…"

She eyed him when he began to pinch her cheeks.

"Sorry, Rose, I can't resist. You have very pubby cheeks."

"Pubby?" Rose said while Donna snorted out laughter.

"Yes, rolly polly pubby cheeks. I just can't resist a squeeze," he said, smiling. "They just call to me telepathically over and over, squeeze me, I'm pubby."

Rose tried to glare at him but she couldn't help but smile at the grin on his face. She glanced back at Donna and shook her head while Donna sniggered.

"Well, if you're done squeezing my pubby cheeks," she said.

"I am…for the moment, don't know how much longer I can resist the pub though."

A toothy grin spread over his face when she giggled hysterically. His hearts warmed hearing her laughter. He was scared that talking to Donna about his double and all the horror they had went through had depressed her and that was the last thing he wanted.

"Okay, before you can't "resist the pub" anymore," Rose said when she sobered up. "I'm saying that I would like to visit somewhere pleasant."

"Same here. We've had a few close calls over the past few days and I just wanna relax a bit," Donna said.

"Aw, where's the fun in that?" the Doctor said. "Honestly, you do enough relaxing here on the TARDIS. Outside the TARDIS should consist of running and fighting monsters, not relaxing. You can relax when you're dead."

"Yeah and considering we're hangin' 'round with ya, it may come sooner than we think," Donna said.

Rose giggled when the Doctor eyed her. He grinned and gave Donna a fish face.

"Don't you start that with me, mate, or I'll deck ya!" Donna said. "You pinch my "pubby" cheeks, I'll put my foot up your pubby arse, you got that?"

"Yes, ma'am," the Doctor said while Rose bent over laughing.

He looked at Rose with wide eyes.

"We agreed to take her on board, eh?"

"Oi!" Donna said. "Watch your gob, Space Man!"

The Doctor sighed.

"Oh alright, we'll go somewhere and "relax", I suppose," he said, making quote marks with his fingers. "Oooooh, you lot are no fun sometimes."

He stood at the console and thought about where to go. While he did, he felt Rose wrap his arms around him and lay her head on her back. He smiled at that and rubbed her right hand before he finally settled on a destination for them.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The Alternate Doctor found a hotel near the pub and he, Mara and Sabessa checked in. They got rooms right next to one another on the fifth floor but Mara and Sabessa gave each other knowing looks when the Alternate Doctor told them they could come visit him if he wanted.

"But knock first, I don't like people coming in unannounced," he said sternly.

He went into his room and closed the heavy wooden door. The hotel was known for it's cliental of thieves, murders and smugglers so there was no chance the staff would tell anyone who he was even if they recognized him. Still, the accommodations left something to be desired since the wooden room was practically bare except for a large oak bed that had squeaky boxsprings, an old tan duvet that covered it, an old battered bedside table with a wooden lamp on top of it and a dresser across the way with an old holotelevision on top of it. The walls were unadorned and there was a tiny window on the far right side of the room that had a view of the street and the surrounding buildings. He liked to come here though because the chef made excellent food for room service and because it was quiet and nobody asked any questions, especially the police.

He walked over to the bed and it creaked and sagged a bit when he sat down on the side of it. He took off his shoes and set them in front of the bedside table before he stretched out on top of the duvet. As he lay there staring up at the ceiling, he thought about the Doctor and his blood boiled as he thought of Lucy throwing the acid in his face and disfiguring him.

"All because the Master was too much of a pussy to kill the Doctor," he muttered. "If we'd killed Grandpa moments after he became old, that escape never would have happened in the first place. Shoulda known he'd double-cross me like the other one did. Well, burn in Hell, you prick, you deserve it."

As he lay there thinking and fantasizing about the Doctor's death, his thoughts turned to Rose and he imagined her at his feet, begging for mercy for her precious Doctor as he slowly tortured him to death in front of her eyes. He homed in on Rose and a lopsided grin spread over his face as he unzipped his trousers, reached inside and began to fondle himself while he continued to fantasize about her begging him for mercy. He then shifted the fantasy to whipping her back while she was tied naked to a bed. He closed his eyes and let himself get taken in by his daydream while he continued his ministrations. He moaned at the thought of Rose screaming in agony as the whip cracked on her back repeatedly. He contined his masturbation for about a half hour, relishing the sick fantasy his warped mind had conjured up about Rose. Raping the Doctor's favorite doggie in front of him while he was chained to the wall, beating her senseless until she was begging for mercy, fucking her in the Doctor's TARDIS right on his naff little jump seat. All these thoughts occupied him until he was jolted back to reality by a knock on the door.

"WHAT?" he yelled, incensed he'd been interrupted.

"It's Mara."

He groaned, zipped his trousers up and went to wash his hands in the adjoining lavatory before opening the door. He raised his eyebrows when he noticed Mara was dressed in a long white filmy, see through gown that showed off her blue tits perfectly.

"I was bored and you said I could come over and see you if I knocked," she said, seductively.

The sight of her nearly naked body made him even more aroused and he knew he had to have her. He grinned when he remembered her telling him she was a shapeshifter.

"You said you can look like anyone, anywhere?" he purred.

"Yes and I'll change just for you if you want me to," she cooed.

"Good. Because I have someone I want you to look like tonight," he said, reaching into his trouser pocket.

He pulled out a photo of Rose. He had taken it back when the chip was in her head and she had been his slave on the Valiant. He had made her take off all her clothes and lay on top of the bed, her legs open while she fondled herself. He had meant to show it off to the Doctor as a way of tormenting him, but he never got the chance. Since then, he kept the photo as a memento of his little doggie. He handed the photo to Mara who raised her eyebrow when she saw what Rose was doing.

"Who's this?" Mara asked him.

"She's no one. Just some whore I shagged one night long ago."

"And you carry around the photo of some random whore in your pocket?"

He grinned.

"Let's just say that looking at the photo inspires me," he said with a devilish grin.

"And you want me to look like her?"

"If you would," he said sweetly.

Mara shrugged. She handed the photo back to him and the Alternate Doctor felt himself growing hard when she shape shifted into an exact duplicate of Rose Tyler.

"Is this what you want?" she said in her own voice.

He grinned and ran his hand down her hair.

"This is exactly what I want. And for tonight, I want you to answer to Rose."

"Rose? What kind of weird name is that?" Mara said.

"Just…humor me," the Alternate Doctor said, exasperated. "Now…are you into bondage and sadism? Because I am."

"I'll do whatever you want me to do, Sweetie, as long as you satisfy me," she said, running a finger down his cheek.

He grinned.

"I think I won't have any problem with that, my beautiful Rose," he said, running his hand down the side of her body. "Now, take the dress off, I want you naked and stay here while I get a few things from my ship so you and I can have a very memorable evening."

"Mmm, I can't wait, hurry back," Mara purred.

"Indeed, I will, Rose. Indeed, I will."

He kissed her lips before he hurried out the door.

___________________

He returned twenty minutes later with several pieces of rope, a whip and a long piece of cloth he could gag her with. He also had some powdered java root, a powerful narcotic similar to cocaine and some healing sauve that would take care of the wounds when he was finished. He wasn't a habitual user of the java root, only indulged in it from time to time. He offered some to Mara and prepared it for her when she nodded. The preparation and inhalation of it was similar to powered cocaine except the effects lasted longer and were more intense. She snorted out two lines of it and the Alternate Doctor waited a moment for the drug to take effect, knowing it would help to ease the pain of what he was about to do.

Once she was under the influence of the drug and undressed, the Alternate Doctor began his role play. While Mara watched in a drugged haze, the Alternate Doctor stood in front of her, whip in one hand and the pieces of rope in the other.

"Rose," he said, "you've been a very naughty doggie. You went off and saw your Doctor again, didn't you?"

Mara was confused by that, wondering what the other Doctor had to do with it. But she didn't ask any questions, knowing this Doctor was using his role play to build up to sex between them. Suddenly, she gasped when the Alternate Doctor lunged forward and seized her neck.

"You little slut!" he growled at her, "you belong to me, not to him! Isn't that right, Slave?"

Mara smirked.

"Yes, my master," she said, playing along.

An evil grin crept over the demented Doctor's face and he patted her cheek.

"That's right, you are. But you were still a bad little doggie and bad little doggies must be punished."

He laid Mara on her stomach in a spread eagle position, just like he saw in his daydream. He tired the gag in her mouth and tied her ankles and wrists together since it was a solid headboard and he had her lay her arms out above her head as if they were tied to it. Once she was ready, the Alternate Doctor partook of the java root and let the effects sink in. He closed his eyes and in his mind's eye, saw his double tied up and helpless behind him, when he opened his eyes and looked back, the java root helped him visualize it in three dimensional form. He smirked at the vision of his helpless adversary.

"I warned you if she returned to you there would be dire consequences, Doctor," he said to the vision. "Now you will watch as your beloved pet bleeds."

And with that, he raised the whip and brought it down hard on Mara's back. Mara screamed through the gag but the Alternate Doctor didn't hear her, so lost was he in the fantasy of punishing the stupid ape that had plagued his life since he met her. Again and again and again, he whipped Mara's back, marring it and causing blood to run everywhere. As he did it, he imagined his weak adversary crying out in rage and pain and pleading with him to stop. The image of the Doctor begging him to stop, only made him whip Mara harder until he was unable to tell the difference between reality and fantasy and believed that he really did have Rose Tyler tied up and at his mercy. But, eventually, after thirty lashes, he sobered up enough to notice that Mara was exhausted and he lowered the whip and let it drop to the floor. He went into the bathroom, wet a flannel and brought it back out. He wiped off all the blood and applied the healing suave to it while Mara rested. Then he took the gag off.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Mmm, yes, that was incredible," Mara moaned.

"You liked that?"

"I did," she said, smiling at him. "I like a lot of pain with my pleasure."

"Then you and I will get along just fine," he said, grinning. "This suave will heal your back in an hour or two, then we'll continue if you'd like."

Mara smiled at that. But after a moment, she gave him a confused look.

"Who is this Rose? If that's the name of the whore in the photo, I have a feeling she's means more to you than just some random tart."

The Alternate Doctor's eyes burned.

"She is the companion of the Doctor, the other one. The one you call the Widow Maker. I held her captive and held him at my mercy once but they both escaped. She is his lover which means if we capture her, he will do whatever we say to prevent her torture or death."

"And that's exactly what you want to do to her, isn't it? Torture and kill her."

"Mmm, in the worst way," the Alternate Doctor said.

"I can't speak for Sabessa but I will help you find her and get your revenge against the other Doctor."

"That's exactly the words I needed to hear," the Alternate Doctor said.

He leaned forward, kissed her lips and then while she slept, he went downstairs to go get something to eat and take a rest before round two.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

The Doctor opened the door and stepped outside with Donna and Rose. They had landed in a field on the outskirts of a bustling futuristic city. Unlike New Earth where flying cars zoomed overhead at a rapid rate, they didn't see many flying cars in the sky above their heads even though it was a sizable city. When Rose asked about it, the Doctor chuckled.

"They don't use them much here. The main means of transportation is teleportation," he told them as they walked towards the city. They have cars and lorries if they need them but most people get into a teleportation pod and, zap, you're where you need to be. If you notice, most of the traffic above us are lorries that are transporting goods but that's about it unless someone is bring home a lot of stuff then they have cars. They developed the teleportation system here in Angel City in order to cut down on pollution."

"Angel City, I like that," Donna said. "Are we on Earth then?"

"No. Earth is gone. This is the year seven billion and sixty six."

"New Earth?" Rose asked him.

"No, but similar. We're in another galaxy, far away from New Earth," he said as they walked. "This planet is called Bazevia. Unlike New Earth, the colonists kept the original name when they settled here. The Bazevians are friendly and peaceful and very intelligent. They are sort of like a cross between humans and raccoons. Humanoid shape and mainly human features with grey fur and a long back and grey striped tail and a black mask around their eyes. I'll point one out if we see one," he replied.

"So why are we here?" Donna asked.

"I thought we would start out just on a little sightseeing tour, Donna. Nothing dangerous, just a chance for you to become acclimated to other species. Angel City was built by the human colonists, hence the name, but it's a very cosmopolitan city and people from all over come to work and play here. When we last saw each other, you had only seen one Racnoss and a handful of robot drones."

"And that was quite enough for one evening, thanks," Donna said as Rose laughed.

"Yes, but if you're going to be traveling with me, you have to get used to other species. This is a great way to see other aliens up close without getting into too much danger."

"So he says," Donna muttered to Rose as she snickered and nodded her head.

"Now, pay close attention to Rose," the Doctor said, not hearing her comment, "she has been doing this for quite a long while and is an expert traveler."

"Why, thank you, Doctor," Rose said, pleased.

"Not at all, my dear, not at all, credit where credit is due and all that. So anyway, here is Angel City in all its glory," he said with arms outstretched.

The city resembled an earth city with a wide variety of building materials from brick buildings to granite to glass. Except for the aliens mixed in with the human population, it looked like a typical Earth city. The cars and lorries looked like Earth cars except that there were hardened Perspex domes over the tops of the car and the drivers of the lorries that allowed them to see the different species that were driving them. Rose glanced at Donna as they walked down the pavement and noticed that she in awe of her surroundings. She smiled at that, remembering when she felt exactly the same way.

The Doctor and his two companions did a bit of window shopping while they walked, looking at all the different items displayed in the huge glass windows, everything from clothes to electronics to toys and even prostitutes. The last window was at the very end of the street they were on but the building looked like an office building. Donna thought it was one of the strangest things she had ever seen. It was as if the office workers had decided to come downstairs on their tea break and whore themselves out to the public. Both women blushed when the Doctor waved cheerfully at the barely dressed women and even started a conversation with them before the mortified friends pulled him away, much to the disappointment of the women who shouted muffled curses at them when they did it.

They turned the corner and kept on going, past more businesses and shop windows until they found a small pub nestled between a department store and an office building. It was called the Black Hole. All three of them checked it out and after deciding it didn't look too seedy, went inside. The interior was well lit and filled with smoke from what looked like several hookahs that patrons were smoking as they sat at round tables scattered around the bar. The bar keep was reptilian and resembled a half human/ half crocodile with a human head that had a short crocodilian snout on it, reptilian yellow eyes and forest green skin and scales. He was wearing a black t-shirt, black trousers and had an apron on. His hands were human except they were green, scaly and had claws on them. He was cleaning a shot glass when the three friends approached. He set it down and a wide smile spread over his snout.

"Doctor, great to see ya again!" he said in a deep, gravely voice, "what'll it be?"

Rose and Donna looked at each other and then looked at the Doctor and noticed he was in complete shock.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" the Doctor said.

The barkeep burst out laughing at that and clapped him so hard on the back the Doctor grunted.

"Very funny, mate. You want the usual?" he asked.

"Uh…yeah…" the Doctor said warily.

The barkeep nodded and walked several feet over to his liquor stash under the bar.

"Who's that?" Rose asked.

"I haven't the foggiest, Rose," the Doctor muttered.

They watched as the barkeep put a tall glass on the table and filled it first with a purple liquid in it and then a green one that floated on top of it. He then reached under the bar and brought out a jar containing several small red berries. He opened it up, reached in, got a berry and put it in. the berry floated to the bottom as the barkeep put the lid back on and put the jar back under the bar. Smiling, he brought the drink over to the befuddled Doctor.

"Cheers, mate," he said.

The Doctor sidestepped just as the man was about to clap him on the back again. The barkeep chuckled at that and went back to cleaning the shot glasses while the Doctor and his companions stared at the drink.

"So what is it?" Donna asked.

"I don't know," the Doctor said. "Somehow I'm afraid if I drink it, I'll regret it later."

"Well why don't you ask Scaly there, he seems to know ya," Donna said, hooking her thumb back at the barkeep.

"Because sometimes that's not a good thing," the Doctor told her. "He seems to know me but I don't know him and I've very rarely visited this city and never at this exact time and place and I've certainly never been in here before so something's going on."

Donna held up her finger and turned towards the barkeep.

"Oi!" she said to him.

The barkeep turned and Donna gave him her most charming smile.

"Sorry to bother you. I'm visiting here with my friend and…"

She trailed off when the barkeep started chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Donna said, annoyed.

"You don't have to lie to me, Miss. I know what's going on here," the barkeep said, touching his snout.

The three friends glanced at each other.

"And what is going on here?" Donna asked.

"Don't play coy with me, Ducky, I know you're a whore, same as her."

The Doctor winced when Donna gave him a look of death.

"I'm a what?" she said, on the verge of punching him.

The barkeep chuckled and walked over to the Doctor.

"These ones got beauty and no brains, eh, mate?" he said, nudging him.

The Doctor cleared his throat when he noticed both women were seconds away from knocking him through the back wall.

"Look, we'll just sit at a table," the Doctor said, grabbing his companion's arms and pulling them away.

"Suit yourself, mate. Get both drunk before you have a go at em, eh?"

"Donna!" the Doctor said, jerking Donna's arm when he sensed she was going to leap over the bar and beat the shit out of the man who was now chuckling and winking at the Doctor.

Not wanting to cause a scene and watch while Donna was hauled off to prison for assaulting a crocodilian barkeep, the Doctor grabbed his drink off the bar and urged them both towards a table in the back where they could sit and talk and try to figure out what was going on.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

"Okay, what's going on here?" Donna asked as they sat down at a table nearest the back wall.

The three of them hunched over the table and whispered so they wouldn't be overheard by the other patrons.

"All I know is I've never been to this pub before and I've never seen that man in my life," the Doctor whispered. "And I certainly think I'd remember drinking one of these things," he added, gesturing to the drink in front of him.

"Well, you are well known, aren't ya?" Rose whispered to him. "Lots of people know about the Doctor."

"Yes, that's true but he didn't act like some star struck fan who wanted to buy me a drink. He acted like we were old friends."

"You sure you haven't met him before?" Donna whispered.

"Pretty sure. I can't be 100 percent certain, after all I'm a very old man but…I don't think I've ever seen him before and…"

He trailed off when he noticed the stricken look on Rose's face.

"Rose? What is it?" he asked, taking her hand.

"Doctor, what if he isn't mistaken. What if he knows you but…it's not you he knows, it's the…other you."

The Doctor turned ashen when the realization sank in.

"Other you?" Donna said, confused.

"What I told you about, Donna, the evil Doctor, the one that held us captive. He escaped and we had no idea where he went," Rose said to her. "What if he's been coming here, Doctor? What if that's the reason why that barkeep knows you or thinks he knows you."

The Doctor sat back and thought about that.

"That would make sense, especially if he drinks heavily enough that the barkeep knows what he likes and as for the whores…"

Rose squeezed his hand when he swallowed hard. He looked back at the barkeep who was hunched over the bar, reading a magazine while he waited for someone to order something. The Doctor had a thought, stood up and walked over to him. Rose and Donna glanced at each other, got up and followed him.

The barkeep smiled when the Doctor came up to him.

"Another round, mate?" he said.

"No, I was just wondering, when was the last time I was in here?" the Doctor asked as Rose and Donna came up beside him.

"You don't remember?" the barkeep said.

The Doctor thought quickly.

"I was very drunk the last time," he said.

He grunted when the barkeep clapped him on the back and laughed.

"Got that right, mate; you were three sheets to the wind that night. I finally had to stop giving ya those double demons because you were on the verge of passing out!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, when was that?" the Doctor said impatiently.

"Oh, I'd say it's been about a month and a half, not that long," the barkeep said, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "You came in here like you did tonight, with two whores on your arms. You musta had a fine time with them. Everyone could hear you up and down the hallway. Speaking of, you want your usual room for the night."

"Uh…yeah," the Doctor said, curious about what his double had been doing in the past month and a half.

"All yours, mate," the barkeep said, reaching down under the bar for a key. "Want your usual toys in there as well."

"Toys?" the Doctor said, frowning.

The barkeep chuckled.

"Yeah, right, better not let your "friends" know what they're in for, eh?" he said, giving him a playful punch in the arm.

"Right," the Doctor said, playing along. "These whores don't know what's in store for them!"

"Too right they don't!" the barkeep said eagerly. "You little ladies are in for one wild night with this bloke. Hope you're into bondage and whippings."

The Doctor flinched and grabbed Rose's hand when he sensed her distress upon hearing that.

"Listen, do you mind taking us up to my room. I wanna talk with you on the way," the Doctor said to him.

"Sure. Room's ready now and I'll have Wurtzle deliver your usual trolley filled with goodies," he said as he walked over to a door in the side of the bar and stepped outside. "By the way, mate, I see the plastic surgery went well."

The Doctor cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh really?" he said, dreading that statement.

"Yeah, no sign of acid scarring anywhere. You musta found one hell of a brilliant surgeon," he said as they walked towards a door in the back of the pub.

He opened the door and they walked up a flight of wooden stairs.

"D'ya ever find that blonde bitch that threw the acid?" the barkeep asked as they went up.

"Um…no, no, I haven't found the bitch yet," the Doctor said as casually as he could. "But trust me, I'm still searching for her."

"I bet. I know how much you wanna get revenge against her. Bitch deserves a slow, painful death for what she did to ya."

"Yes, she does," the Doctor said as he suddenly decided to play a hunch. "And Rose does as well."

"Oh yeah, still after her too?"

Rose stifled a gasp as they reached the first floor and turned left into a corridor.

"Yeah, I am. I wanna make that bitch suffer," the Doctor said, loathing the words as they came out of his mouth. "You haven't seen her, have you?"

"Me? No, what makes you think I've seen her?" the barkeep said, glancing back at him.

"Just checking," the Doctor said casually.

The barkeep led them to the third door on the right. He unlocked it and they stepped into a tiny room with a wooden floor, a low wood ceiling and unadorned walls that were covered with white wallpaper. There was a full sized bed along the back wall with no headboard, a bedside table with a black iron lamp, a threadbare green rug on the right side of the bed and a chest of drawers with a mirror above it on the left side of the wall.

"I'll go find Wurtzle and have her bring in the trolley. Enjoy your stay," the barkeep said before he walked out.

Once he was gone, Rose sank onto the bed, her face ashen. The Doctor sat down beside her and took her hand.

"I won't let him hurt you, Rose," he said. "I promise I'll protect you. He won't take you from me again. If he lays one finger on you, he'll regret it!"

"Yeah, same here," Donna said. "If this bastard comes anywhere near ya, I'll bash his ugly face in!"

"Oi!" the Doctor said as Rose laughed.

"What?" Donna said, confused. "He's a bastard, isn't he? I mean, Rose told me all about him."

"Yes, he is. I don't have any problem with you calling him a bastard, I do have a problem with you calling him ugly since the man is my duplicate from another universe so in effect you're calling me ugly."

"Oh!" Donna said, embarrassed, while Rose laughed harder. "I'm sorry. I didn't think of it like that."

"He's ugly on the inside, Donna, that's what you mean," Rose said, smiling warmly at her.

"Yeah, that's what I meant, honestly," Donna said.

"Okay, I can accept that," the Doctor replied as Donna gave Rose's shoulder a squeeze.

They heard a knock on the door and when the Doctor yelled out to come in, the door opened and a slender blue alien woman entered the room wheeling in a large metal trolley that was covered with a long white cloth. The alien woman smiled and winked at the Doctor before turning around and shutting the door behind her as she left.

"I s'pose these are the "toys," the Doctor said, getting up and walking over to the trolley.

He pulled the cloth off and the women let out a gasp. There was an upper and lower shelf on the trolley. On the top shelf was a pair of handcuffs, a jar of clear liquid, a brass dildo, a long piece of cloth that the Doctor surmised was a gag of some kind, a scalpel and a white jar filled with cream. On the bottom shelf was a coiled whip and two lengths of coiled rope that had been covered in red velvet.

"Nice to know my double has a hobby," the Doctor said as he examined the scalpel.

He picked up the jar and examined it. On the front was a label with hieroglyphic alien writing on the front of it. Rose stared at the label and then glanced up at the Doctor who had now turned pale.

"Doctor, what is it?" Rose asked.

"This is hydrochloric acid, Rose," he said to her. "This acid is one of his sex toys."

Rose stared at the jar in silent shock while the Doctor sighed angrily and sat it down on the trolley. He picked up the jar of cream, unscrewed the top and sniffed it.

"Don't tell me you're gonna eat it," Rose said to him.

"After seeing the acid, not a chance," the Doctor said. "But…"

He sniffed it again.

"I think this is Savos root cream and if I'm right, it's used for healing injuries. Which is nice of him considering he whips and beats and throws acid and apparently rams brass things up inside these so-called whores of his. Nice to know he's considerate enough to heal them after he's broken and nearly killed them," he said sarcastically. "This man is a sadistic maniac and he needs to be stopped."

He looked at Rose and Donna.

"But I won't endanger you, Rose, especially if he's still hunting for you, and I'll be damned if you ever meet him in person, Donna. However, I can't let him roam around and cause trouble and hurt others. So I need you both to go back to the TARDIS for a bit while I make inquiries. I wanna know if he has other pubs or hotels he goes to on this planet and them I'm gonna try to find him and when I do, that bastard is gonna finally be brought to justice."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

The Alternate Doctor stepped outside his hotel and breathed in the cool night air. He loved nights like this in Bazevia. It was the weekend and there was a party atmosphere around him. Mara was on his arm and he decided to take her to his favorite pub and to his favorite hotel room there for a bit more fun. The two of them strolled arm and arm, passing aliens of every shape, size and description. The Alternate Doctor could tell his companion was enchanted by everything and he suddenly realized it might be a good idea to take on companions. At the very least, he'd have a ready supply of fuck buddies at his disposal. He led her to the pub and they went inside.

"Ah, you're back!" the barkeep said, "and you have another plaything. Did you have fun with the other two then?"

The Alternate Doctor stared at him in confusion.

"Maza, this is the first time I've been in here tonight," he said to him.

"No, you were in her earlier with a blonde and a ginger. You drank your usual and then went up to your room for some fun with your whores."

"Dabbling in other women?" Mara asked the Alternate Doctor.

"No, I…"

Then something occurred to him.

"You say I came in earlier with a blonde haired woman?" he said to Maza.

"Yeah, blonde and a ginger. Both very lovely."

"Ginger. He didn't have a ginger doggie but then again, time has passed. Tell me; was there a dark skinned woman with me?"

Maza gave him a confused look.

"No, why did you have an extra one hidden somewhere?" he asked him.

"No, Maza, that wasn't me, that was a weak, spineless, pathetic twat who thinks he's me," the Alternate Doctor said. "Is the other me still upstairs?"

"No, he left awhile ago with the women."

The Alternate Doctor cursed.

"Keep an eye open for him. If someone who looks like me comes back in with the blonde and ginger, keep him here and call me on my communicator."

"Sure will. What's the problem though? Does he owe you money?" Maza asked.

"Let's just say he and I have a very old score to settle," the Alternate Doctor said.

He turned and stomped out the door. Mara ran after him.

"What's this about?" Mara said when she caught up to him and stopped him.

"It's him, my other self, he's here and I'm going to find him and his bitches and kill them all," the Alternate Doctor growled. "Now get out of my way so I can go find him!"

"And just how do you plan on finding him?" Mara said. "If you haven't noticed, this is a large city. Where are you going to start looking?"

The Alternate Doctor thought for a moment and then smirked.

"I'm going to start with his mind," he said.

"What does that mean?"

The Alternate Doctor hushed her, holding up his hand. He dropped his mental barrier that kept him shielded not only from the Doctor but from other powerful telepaths that could tell people of his location. He could sense his double's mind and homed in on it.

_So, we've crossed paths once more,_ the Alternate Doctor thought to him.

There was a moment of silence and then he felt the Doctor linking with his mind.

_Believe me, I wasn't here to find you but now that you are here, it's time to put a stop to whatever it is you're doing._

_And what am I doing, Spineless Lord,_ the Alternate Doctor thought with amusement. _You don't know why I'm here; I could just be here enjoying myself._

_Somehow I doubt it. _

_Where are your doggies? Maza, the barkeep, mentioned a ginger. Where's Martha?_

_I'm warning you, leave them alone!_

_You didn't answer my question, Doctor. What happened? Did you tire of Martha and send her to the kennel while you adopted the ginger bitch?_

_I'm warning you, leave them alone! _The Doctor growled in his mind.

_On the contrary, I'm eager to see Rose again. The little doggie intrigues me as I'm sure you know. Besides, it's been awhile since I've fucked her and I'm eager for another go._

He snickered when he sensed the Doctor's rage at that.

_Yes, I can see why you love her so, she's quite talented at fucking, _he said, loving the fact that he was making his double angry._ She's very acrobatic, I had fun bonking her. So where is she?_

_Where are you? _

_Ah, ah, not so fast, I want this to be a game. Let's call the game, find me before I find your doggies. How about that? _

The Doctor didn't reply. The Alternate Doctor searched his mind and found to his amusement that the Doctor had blocked him. He snickered while Mara let out an exasperated sigh.

"Okay, what's going on?" she said.

"I just spoke with my other half and issued a little challenge. You see, I want him to worry about losing his pets to me and make a mistake that I can then exploit. Plus, I want to see Rose again."

"Rose, the woman you wanted me to impersonate?"

"Yes, the woman in the photograph. She and a ginger woman are here with the Doctor. Now all I have to do is find his TARDIS since I figure he'll send the doggies back to the doghouse for safekeeping."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his sonic screwdriver. Mara watched with interest while he scanned his surroundings for a moment before he beckoned to her.

"Come, my dear, I have picked up the hound dog's scent and I want you to meet the woman you impersonated."

The Doctor panted as he ran through the people out strolling the pavement of Angel City. He was mentally kicking and cursing himself as he ran hell for leather back towards the TARDIS. He had been careless again. He should have immediately gone back to the TARDIS with Rose and Donna instead of playing Sherlock Holmes. He should have known that his double would come back; it was just his luck that he would pick the same night as he to frequent his favorite pub. And now, his lover and best friend were in danger and if they were captured once more by that maniac. The thought of what he might do to them and to Rose especially made him run until he felt like his lungs would burst from his exertions. He tried to do a low level mind link with Rose since Donna hadn't been in the TARDIS long enough for his ship to strengthen the bond between them.

_Rose, it's the Doctor, the other Doctor is here and he knows we're in the city. He's looking for us and particularly for you, be careful!_

He picked up speed while he thought to her and willed himself to move faster as he ran around the startled people and tried to avoid bumping into them and getting knocked over.

_Rose, it's the Doctor, the other Doctor is here and he knows we're in the city. He's looking for us and particularly for you, be careful!_

Rose froze in her tracks when she heard the faint voice of the Doctor in her mind. Donna, who was walking beside her, stopped and gave her an odd look when she saw the stricken look on her face.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"He's here, Donna. The Doctor just thought to me and told me that the other Doctor, the evil one, is here and looking for us."

"Wait, you were able to speak with him telepathically?" Donna said in disbelief.

"The TARDIS links our minds with his as long as we're his companions and he can think to us through it. He just wanted to give me the warning because I think my link is stronger than yours since you haven't been with us that long. But what matters is we need to get back to the TARDIS before the other Doctor does or we're for it. Come on, Donna, run!"

The Alternate Doctor was ecstatic, he was nearing his double's TARDIS, the reading from his screwdriver were getting stronger and he was starting to run now, ignoring Mara who was struggling to catch up with him. Suddenly, he had an idea and turned to her. He came close to her and whispered what he wanted her to do.

"Come on, Donna, we're almost there," Rose said as both of them panted and gasped.

"Blimey, I have a feeling I'm gonna lose weight being around you lot," Donna gasped out as she tried to keep up with her.

They were several feet from the TARDIS when Mara suddenly ran around it and blocked the door. Both women stopped and panted heavily.

"Whoever you are, leave if you know what's good for you," Rose said to Mara.

"On the contrary, my beloved, she's my guest."

Rose's blood turned to ice when the Alternate Doctor sauntered around the police box and stood beside Mara. He eyed her hungrily while Rose started to back away.

"What's going on?" Donna said, confused, as her gaze alternated between the alternate Doctor and Mara.

"So, you are the ginger doggie, eh? Not bad. I have to say this about my double, he does have good taste in women," the Alternate Doctor said.

"I'm sorry, what did you call me?" Donna said angrily.

"A doggie and a feisty one at that. He sure does love the headstrong apes," the Alternate Doctor said to Mara.

His gaze turned back to Rose and he started to walk towards her while Rose began to back up, looking around panicked for her Doctor.

"Come with me," the alternate Doctor said, holding out his hand. "You belong with me, Rose. You always have. Leave that spineless do-gooder and see what being with a real adventurer is like."

"Donna, back away from him. Don't let him catch you," Rose said, grabbed her arm and forcing her to walk backwards.

"No, don't be afraid, Rose, things'll be different this time, I promise," the Alternate Doctor cooed. "I have some new friends for you to meet. This is Mara and my other friend is Sebessa, you'll get along great with them."

Rose suddenly yelled to Donna and both women turned and ran. But the Alternate Doctor was already anticipating their flight and he and Mara overwhelmed both women in seconds. The Alternate Doctor put a handkerchief filled with chloroform over Rose's mouth and nose while Mara grabbed Donna and cricked her neck, sending her into unconsciousness. The Alternate Doctor let out a triumphant cry of joy when Rose slumped in his arms.

"Hello, my lovely," he said to her unconscious body. "I have you back again and this time you won't get away from me. Now…let me lay you down for a moment because I have to wipe this moment from Ginger's mind so she'll never know we were here and then Mara, my dear, I need you to impersonate the lovely Rose here for awhile so he won't know she's gone until it's too late."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

The Doctor gasped and panted as he ran through some trees and stopped. He saw Donna sitting on the ground while Rose knelt next to her. Relief gave way to concern when he noticed that Donna looked dazed.

"What happened?" the Doctor said, kneeling down beside them.

"I feel like a lorry just hit me," Donna said, holding her head in her hands.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked.

"I will be once my head stops throbbin'," Donna said.

He helped her to her feet and let her lean on him while he walked over to the TARDIS. He looked around and when he was satisfied that his double wasn't around them, he unlocked the door and let Rose help Donna inside. He quickly went inside and shut the door behind them, locking it and then running to the console where he deadlock sealed it.

"Are we leaving?" Donna asked.

"Not just yet. We have to find out what he's doing here because I'm sure it involves more than going down the pub," the Doctor said, walking over to the console. "But for now, I want to take Donna back to the med bay and make sure she's alright. Follow me," he said to Rose.

Mara nodded. She waited till the Doctor's back was turned and smirked while she helped walk Donna back to the med bay.

Meanwhile, the alternate Doctor had taken Rose back to his TARDIS, his cock throbbing in his trousers while he held her unconscious body in his arms. This time, he was bound and determined not to let her escape or let his do-gooder double have her back. She would be his forever. He unlocked his TARDIS which was currently sitting in the woods disguised as a large tree. He entered through the trunk of the tree and walked to the console. He lay Rose down in front of the console and walked back to the door, closing it and locking it.

"I have to restrain you, my dear, because I need to go get Sabessa," he said. "I also put a tracking device on Mara's body and once your former lover leaves, I'll be able to track him. Mara's been good to me so far and I don't want to lose her since she's as good a fuck as you are. Just think of it, you and Mara and Sabessa can pleasure me and possibly each other. I would like that.'

He ran his finger down her cheek and chuckled low in his throat before he knelt down and pressed his lips to hers. He had to fight himself from taking her then and there, especially since he was rock hard now. Instead, he made himself get back up. He looked at her hungrily as he took her in his arms and carried her to his bedroom.

Meanwhile, Mara was studying the other Doctor while he and Donna stood at the console. Donna was gripping the rim of the console and the Doctor kept glancing at her worriedly.

"Donna, are you alright?" he finally asked.

"I guess he hit me harder than I thought," Donna said. "But…something's wrong. I keep thinking like I'm missing something. Like I'm supposed to remember something and I can't."

Mara stiffened, wondering if the Doctor would catch on about what really happened. She knew he couldn't be fooled forever, once he found out this Rose was kidnapped he would be angry and it would be she and not her lover who would bear the brunt of his rage since she was the one who was in the TARDIS with him. Suddenly, she realized what a stupid idea this was and how her Doctor would get off scot free if he did find out. She neared closer to him, studying him closer. The Doctor was still speaking to Donna, trying to help her remember whatever she had forgotten. She observed him with curiosity since he was supposedly the Widow Maker, the most evil being the universe had ever known and yet, you would never know that from the way he was interacting with Donna. Then he turned towards her and Mara was shocked by the loving look in the Doctor's eyes, a look she'd never seen in her Doctor's eyes or in the eyes of any other men she had come into contact with in her life.

"How about you? Are you alright?" he said to her.

Mara nodded, not knowing what to say. Unlike her Doctor, this Doctor's skin was smooth. He had a baby face and a gentleness to him that the other Doctor didn't possess. He looked at Donna.

"Come with me, rest for awhile and I'll give you something to help with your headache," he said to her.

Donna nodded and the Doctor put his arm around her while he beckoned for Mara to follow them. He led them back to the med bay and stopped there long enough to get Donna a couple of pain pills. Once she swallowed them, he led her to her bedroom.

"Get some rest, I'm going to be up in the console room planning our next move," he said to Donna as they walked.

"I don't understand, how is it possible for this Doctor to exist here?" Donna said to him. "Wouldn't you cancel each other out?"

"We would if we were both from the universe but he's from Rose's old universe so he's me but separate from me," the Doctor said. "The point is he's pure evil and I don't want you or Rose around him. He's nothing but trouble and he'll do anything to you to get back at me. That's why I want you to stay close to me until I know for sure that he's not a threat any longer."

Donna nodded and the Doctor gave her a hug when they stopped outside her bedroom.

"Get some rest, my friend, and I'll talk to you later."

"Goodnight, Doctor. Goodnight, Rose."

"Goodnight," Mara said to her.

She followed the Doctor as he led her away.

"I wish I knew what Donna was trying to remember," the Doctor said to her as they walked. "If she can't remember it, I might go into her mind and see if I can find it. It might be something important. Especially if my double attacked you."

Mara's heart raced at that and she hoped that he wouldn't uncover their deception since she was sure that he could go from being gentle to being the Widow Maker in a heartbeat. Then to her surprise, the Doctor stopped her and put his hands on her arms.

"What about you? Are you alright?" he asked. "Did he do anything to you?'

Mara shook her head.

"You've been very quiet since I found you. Are you sure he didn't do something and you're scared to tell me?" he asked, studying her. "I know what he did to you in the past and I know you're probably wanting to spare my feelings but I need to know so please if that bastard assaulted you, physically or sexually, I want to know."

Mara shook her head, wishing she had the ability to mimic voices as well as she did bodies. She knew her silence was only fueling his suspicions but she didn't want to speak up, not when she was trapped in the TARDIS with no way out. But as she stared at him, she suddenly got the urge to kiss him. Ignoring her better judgment, she leaned up and kissed his lips. She felt the Doctor loosen up and let out a sigh through his nose as he returned it. Mara kissed him more confidently now and was rewarded when the Doctor opened his mouth and let her explore inside it. The Doctor ran his hands up her back and she felt a tingle run down her spine as his hands went up. As she snogged him, she suddenly realized that this Doctor was a far better kisser than her own, not to mention gentler with her. Caught up in the moment, she ran her fingers through his hair while the Doctor moaned into her mouth.

"Rose," he said, momentarily coming up for air.

Then he said something in an unintelligible but beautiful alien language that managed to make Mara feel more aroused than she did before. She neared close to him and the Doctor wrapped his arms around her, watching her quietly while she put her head against his chest and listened to his double heartbeats. Suddenly, she didn't want to go back to the other Doctor, she found she preferred this one to the other more brutal version. She opened her mouth and tried to imitate Rose's voice but kept it at a whisper so if she got it wrong it would be harder to tell.

"Doctor," she whispered. "I love you."

She glanced up and tears nearly came to her eyes when she saw the loving look in his eyes and she felt herself falling more deeply in love with him. She wondered if perhaps the other Doctor would content himself with Rose and not come after her because at the moment, she wouldn't mind being with this version for the rest of her life.

Then suddenly, the Doctor broke apart and Mara felt a strange longing for his arms around her again.

"I need to figure out what to do next about my double," the Doctor said to her. "We need to find a way to stop him before he does something. He's up to something and I intend to find out what. Come on, we need to go back down and find out his plans."

He held out his hand and Mara took it, a secret thrill running through her body when his hand closed around hers. He gave her a loving smile and Mara felt herself smiling back at him as they headed back to the console room.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Rose slowly opened her eyes, trying to get her bearings. When her sight began to clear she could see a ceiling and she felt a soft mattress under her back and realized she was lying on a bed. She tried to get up and gasped when her arms pulled and she heard a clink. She craned her neck up and groaned when she saw her hands were manacled that were attached to a headboard.

"Great," Rose muttered.

She looked down and noticed her ankles weren't shackled to the bed, they were tied together with a thick strip of rawhide.

"Doctor, wherever you are, I hope you're coming for me," Rose murmured as she looked around and tried to come up with a plan of escape.

Her head jerked back towards the door when she heard it opening. The door opened a bit and then the Alternate Doctor stuck his head in, an evil grin on his face.

"So…you've awakened, my pet," he cooed as he came in the room.

"We've been through this before. Let me go or the Doctor will rip the flesh off your skull this time."

"Yes," the Alternate Doctor said nonchalantly as he neared the bed. "We have been through this before, haven't we? I keep trying to keep you with me and that bumbling buffoon of a Doctor keeps interfering. Well, this time he's not coming to rescue you."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Rose said.

"I would because Mara is with him and his ginger pet," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Mara? Who is Mara?" Rose said.

"One of the delightful women who is now my traveling companion. See, I decided to take a leaf from Loser's book and recruit others to follow me mindlessly wherever I go and Mara is one of them. She's an accomplished warrior, stunning as hell and…she's a shapeshifter. Guess who she shapeshifted into, sweetie?"

He laughed when Rose's eyes widened and he ran his finger up Rose's left leg.

"Yes, little doggie," he purred as he neared her crotch, "the Doctor thinks you're still with him which means you're all mine."

"He'll figure it out," Rose said desperately as the Alternate Doctor's finger stopped just below her crotch. "This Mara will make a mistake and then not only will he be coming for you but you won't have her around any longer."

"Eh," the Alternate Doctor said with a shrug, "you make a good consolation prize if I lose her. Now be good and hold still."

He jerked his finger back when Rose tried to kick out with her bound legs. She gasped when the Alternate Doctor slammed his hands down on her legs, murder in his eyes.

"Still haven't learned to listen, have we?" he growled at her. "After all you've been through I'd think you'd have learned by now not to fuck with me because I mean what I say!"

Rose gasped when he slapped her across the face.

"This is getting old, Rose; I'm tired of mucking with you. You should know by now what the drill is. But since you're such a dim little ape, I'll repeat it. Shut the fuck up and do as I say! Got that?"

He seized her face and pushed her head into the bed as Rose tried not to cry from the pain and abuse. She shut her eyes tight when she felt the Alternate Doctor unbuttoning her jeans and she tried to think of her Doctor when he finished undoing her jeans and slipped her hands down them.

"I don't want to hurt you, Rose," she heard the Alternate Doctor say while he rubbed his fingers on her crotch. "I would like you to love me as much as you love him."

"You don't even like me," Rose said with her eyes still closed. "I'm a stupid ape and a dog to you."

"No…" the Alternate Doctor said, getting down next to her face, "I realized that's not true in your case. You are so much more than that and I see why my double goes to so much trouble to rescue you and keep him with you. You are far more intelligent than the average scum sucking Earthling and you and me could be a team."

"Sorry, I don't wanna be evil," Rose said.

"But aren't you evil when you interfere in other planet's right to govern themselves? You and he play God all the time deciding what needs to happen on Earth and in other species' lives. Isn't that evil, forcing others in the universe to conform to your view of morality and what's right and wrong? Now with me, I don't give a fuck and you could do the same. No more having to worry about if you're overstepping your boundaries and being evil when you could just throw caution to the wind and be evil anyway. How about it, Rose? You and me, together…for the rest of your life…or perhaps even longer if I can figure out a way to extend your fragile human life. Think of it, Rose, two immortals traveling through time and space together."

Rose didn't say anything in response. She grunted when the Alternate Doctor jerked her jeans down to her ankles followed by her panties. She opened her eyes a crack and noticed the Time Lord was staring at her crotch with hungry eyes. She tried to shut them again when he looked up at her but she heard him guffawing.

"I saw your eyes, love, you might as well keep them open," he said. "I like to see my lover's eyes when I make love to her."

"The Doctor will stop you," Rose said, glaring at him.

"The Doctor will stop you, the Doctor will stop you," he said mockingly in a snotty voice. "I get so sick and tired of hearing that. When will you learn that even if that wanker takes you back, I'll always be one step behind tracking you. You can't get away from me, Rose, you might as well cut the crap and shut your fucking mouth. Now, will you let me take the restraint off your ankles so I can fuck you or do I have to pour fucking acid on your face and damage your good looks?"

"I…won't resist," Rose muttered, turning her face to the wall.

"Why doesn't that fill me with confidence?" the Alternate Doctor muttered as he got up from the bed.

Salty tears filled up Rose's eyes and she squeezed her eyes as they ran down her cheeks. She listened to the Alternate Doctor pulling something out from under the bed and she willed her mind to go far away so she wouldn't have to conscious of what was coming next.

Meanwhile, the Doctor was standing at his console trying to decide what to do next. He considered going back to the pub and questioning the landlord about his nemesis but only by himself since he wanted Rose and Donna to be safe. While he was thinking out a strategy, he felt hands on his shoulders and looked over them. Mara was standing behind him still masquerading as Rose and she felt a thrill when he smiled tenderly at her and patted the hand on his right shoulder.

"Trying to decide what to do next," he said to her. "I think I should question the landlord at the pub and see what he knows about tall, thin and ugly. Eventually, we'll have to think up a way to capture Ugly and bring him back here. And this time, I'm going to have the TARDIS lock him away deep inside her somewhere since I can't trust a prison to hold him. Only the TARDIS is secure enough to contain him for the rest of his lives and she has the means to stop him if on the off chance he figures out how to break out of the prison she builds for him. But you know what? I'm tired of dealing with him. This is the fourth time I've had to go after him and it's getting very old, very quick. And I'm sure you're tired of him hunting you, yeah?"

Mara nodded and the Doctor frowned.

"Are you sure you're not ill? You still won't say much," he said, turning to her.

She shook her head.

"And you're not helping my worries by not speaking," the Doctor added, putting a hand on her cheek. "Rose, if you're scared, tell me. I'll understand."

"I s'pose I really am ill," Mara muttered softly. "Too much stress."

She glanced at the Doctor's face and her heart lurched when she saw the dubious expression on his face but he nodded and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Have a lie down then, I'm going to handle the landlord on my own," he said.

Mara nodded and the Doctor kissed her cheek. She turned and walked away while the Doctor watched her intently.

"Something's wrong, Rose," he muttered to himself. "I don't know why you won't tell me what's going on but I intend to find out."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Rose lay by herself inside the Alternate Doctor's room. He had finished having sex with her and had left her tied to the bed. He had thrown a blanket over her naked body but her arms were still exposed and the chill air on them made her shiver. The clothes she was wearing had been cut off her with a huge knife and were now strewn on the floor around the bed. Tearstains were on both cheeks while she sobbed softly. The Alternate Doctor had been incredibly rough with her and she had several bruises on her body from where he pinched and slapped her. He was so brutal in his lovemaking that she found it impossible to take her mind away from the situation and concentrate on memories of her real Doctor. Swallowing hard, she decided to try her mind link. Up till now she'd been too upset and traumatized to concentrate on speaking to him telepathically but now she closed her eyes and concentrated on him.

_Doctor,_ she thought to him. _Doctor, can you hear me?_

She waited for a response, praying that he could hear her. But to her horror, the door flew open and the Alternate Doctor stuck his head inside.

"Yes, I'm here, sweetums, what do you need?" he said in a sickeningly sweet voice.

Rose's heart began to race as the Alternate Doctor sidled over to the bed.

"Trying to contact him?" he said as he stood over her. "That's a bad idea when you're in a TARDIS that has a similar mind link to the one you share with him. Not to mention the TARDIS is cloaked and shielded at the moment so no telepathic communications can reach him. So, sorry, sweetums, no contacting your hubby, bubby, dubby from here."

Rose's spirits sank and she shut her eyes in anguish while her head slumped to the side. She felt a weight on the bed when the Alternate Doctor sat down beside her and she flinched when he began to stroke her cheek.

"Why are you so hostile towards me, Rose?" he said to her as he stroked her cheek. "I'm him, can't you get that. I'm the same man so technically you were fucking the same man, yeah? Now I admit I have been rough with you and a bastard but that's my personality. Not to mention most of the women I've had like it rough. But you apparently don't so I'd be willing to tone it down since I don't want a writhing, combative, shrieking banshee under me while I'm having sex. You and I have gotten off on the wrong foot."

Rose had to let out a snort at that.

"Ya think?" she spat out when she finally looked at him.

"Okay, I admit I did some things to you that I shouldn't have. But…you're the most spirited woman I've ever been with and I'm used to very submissive people. I'm used to getting my way and when you fought me, I reverted to animalistic behavior and put a chip in you, among other things. I have a temper, if you haven't noticed but I can be gentle as well. Ask Mara and Sabessa when you talk to them. They'll tell you."

"What are you getting at? You want me to fall in love with you and be your companion now?" Rose said.

"I wouldn't mind that. I think it would be easier for you as well since you're not getting out of here and the Boy Scout isn't coming in without my TARDIS imprisoning him. At the very least it'll take him awhile to find us since I've cloaked us and by then Mara could do some nasty things to him. She's pissed off at him. Her people call him The Widow Maker and she hates him with a passion so I could see him getting a knife in his back at some point in future. So…it makes sense for you to ally yourself with me."

"I'd rather die," Rose said, looking at the wall.

"Oh come now, no need to get that dramatic. Like I said, I'm basically him, right? So you're not cheating on him since he's me. You're just trading in the daft Doctor for a new, improved model."

Rose didn't answer that as she continued to stare at the wall. She felt the blanket slide off her and didn't say a word when the Alternate Doctor sat down and bent over to suck on her right nipple.

"I'm him, Rose," he said in between sucks, "just keep telling yourself that. I'm him."

Rose fought to keep still and keep from caring about his ministrations but to her silent horror, she felt her body becoming aroused and she knew it was because he was right. He may be evil but he did know how to pleasure her when he wasn't being a bastard. The Doctor often sucked on her nipple in this manner and her body was responding to it even though she was trying not to show him any sign of arousal. The Alternate Doctor rose up and chuckled when he saw her erect nipple.

"Now see, you like it," he purred as he stroked her aureole.

Rose thought to herself while the Alternate Doctor continued his ministrations. She knew she had to remain calm and think her way out of the situation like the Doctor would. She often watched while the Doctor pretended to give in to an adversary in order to buy time to get the upper hand. He wasn't above sacrificing his comfort for a moment to strike back. She had seen that firsthand recently when they'd went through that hell-filled year where her beloved had to endure being an old, feeble man. He had borne that indignity with patience, buying time until his trap could be sprung and it was because of that patience that the Master was defeated. She knew if he were here, he'd be telling her to try the same method.

_If I continue to resist, he'll continue to abuse me or maybe do something worse,_ she thought to herself. If _I pretend to submit, I'll avoid constant abuse and buy time to think of a way out of this. If the Doctor can make sacrifices, so can I. _

She relaxed and pretended that it was her Doctor making love to her. Closing her eyes, she let go of her resistance and allowed herself to enjoy what he was doing. She had to admit it was pleasurable and because he was the double of her beloved it was easy to imagine it was her Doctor doing the licking and sucking. She began to moan softly and felt the Alternate Doctor stopping what he was doing.

"Do my ears deceive me or are you starting to enjoy this?"

She opened her eyes and saw him staring at her with an amused smile on his face.

"You're right," she said, forcing herself to say the words as convincingly as she could. "There's no way I can escape and you are one version of my Doctor…"

The Alternate Doctor crawled closer to her face. Rose kept her composure, trying to imagine her Doctor's handsome face in place of the slightly scarred version before her.

"You and I, we need to start over," the Alternate Doctor said gently. "Make amends and make a fresh start. Don't you agree?"

Rose wondered if he was being sincere or if he was playacting. If so, both she and him were deceiving the other which seemed strange to her. She felt odd trying to deceive a version of a man that she always tried to be honest with and she had to work hard to try sounding sincere so he wouldn't suspect her of treachery. But even though she was surrendering to him at the moment that didn't mean she wasn't keeping her guard up in case this whole sudden sweetness thing was part of a trap.

"Yeah, I think we should start over," Rose said, hoping she sounded convincing. "You don't have to be this way, yeah? Couldn't you turn over a new leaf? Perhaps I can help you do that."

"Well…let's not go that far," the Alternate Doctor said. "Don't wanna end up like the Boy Scout and bring sunshine and happiness to the cosmos but…"

He ran his finger down her cheek.

"Perhaps I can teach you to let go of your inhibitions and be bad for a change," he said in a husky voice.

A glimmer of an idea sparked in Rose's mind.

"Yeah, that does sound interesting," Rose said, again trying to be convincing. "Maybe it would be fun to be a bad girl for a change."

"That's the spirit!" the Alternate Doctor said. "With your many talents, I could turn you into an assassin that would make even Wuss Puss tremble and wet himself."

_I doubt that,_ Rose thought to herself. _But maybe if I pretend to turn bad, I can convince him I want to kill the Doctor and that way I can find my way back to him. It's worth a shot. I can't do anything to help the Doctor while I'm chained to this bed. _

The Alternate Doctor seemed ecstatic that she was coming over to his side but she still kept her guard up just in case he was playing her the same way he was playing him. She kept from flinching when he kissed her cheek. Then he stood up.

"I'll be back in a minute. Have to get something for you," he said.

Rose watched him hurry out of the room. She looked at her shivering naked body and then looked at the blanket that was now lying on the floor by her ripped clothing that would have been nice and warm.

"Wanker," Rose muttered to herself as she tried to endure the chilly air.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Mara was debating what to do. The Doctor told her to take a rest but she wanted to follow him back to the pub, to hear what the landlord would say and also just to be near him. She wondered if the other Doctor had gone back there to spend another night in his room. In a way, she hoped he had since she would like nothing more than to watch this Doctor destroy him. It was odd thinking that since this Doctor was a war criminal to her people and she had grown up thinking that as well but the more time she spent around him, the more she was growing to love him and see that perhaps her people had misjudged him. She finally decided that she would talk to the Doctor and convince him to take her with him and she turned around and headed back to the console room.

She nearly reached the console room when she suddenly heard the Doctor's voice and she paused before going on.

"I don't know what's going on but I want you to be careful when you're around her," the Doctor was saying. "She's just not herself."

"What d'ya think is wrong with her?" she heard Donna saying.

"Dunno, but she's been possessed before and it might have happened again. Or that bastard really did get to her and put another bloody chip in her head. You still think like you're forgetting something, yeah?"

"Yeah, it's so odd; it feels like something's gone from my memories."

"Let me scan your mind and see if I can reclaim any missing memories."

Mara cursed loudly. She was afraid of this. She didn't think she could keep up the masquerade forever, she just hoped it would have taken longer for the Doctor to catch on. But then again, why wouldn't he think something was fishy when she wouldn't even speak to him except to say a few words in a muttered voice. She hesitated for a moment listening to the silence coming from the console room as she once again debated what to do. Finally, she decided to take her chances, fess up and throw herself at his mercy since she figured she'd be the next one to have a brain scan after he was finished with Donna. She walked silently into the room and stopped just past the door when she saw the Doctor was standing by his console with Donna. Both of their eyes were closed and the Doctor had his fingertips against Donna's temples, a look of concentration while he scanned her mind. Despite her fear, Mara was intrigued since she had no idea the Doctor was capable of scanning minds and she wondered if the other Doctor was capable of the same feat. Summoning her courage, she moved quietly towards them, relying on her stealth to get close. But even though she was making no sound in her approach, the Doctor still sensed her and he opened his eyes and looked her way.

"Truly, you have abilities beyond mortal men," Mara said in her normal voice.

The Doctor raised his eyebrow as he took his fingers away from Donna's head.

"So, you've decided to speak up at last, "Rose"," he said to her while Donna opened her eyes and looked at Mara. "You must be ill; you don't sound like yourself at all. I'm guessing you have a frog in your throat then?"

"I'm not Rose," Mara said.

"No kidding, never would have guessed," the Doctor said, nearing her. "So who are you then and what are you doing in Rose's body?"

"I'm not in Rose's body," Mara said before she shapeshifted back to her normal form.

The Doctor studied her for a moment, taking in her blue skin and white hair before he folded his arms over his chest. Donna came up beside him and gave her a murderous look while the Doctor raised his eyebrow.

"I will allow you to speak," the Doctor said. "And you will tell me where Rose is and you will cooperate, otherwise you will live to regret it."

"Especially if you've hurt her," Donna snarled at her.

"So, where is she? With my other self?" the Doctor said, nearing closer to her.

"Yes," Mara said.

"And…" the Doctor prompted.

"I don't know what's happening to her. I barely know her. He asked me to impersonate her so you wouldn't realize she was missing."

The Doctor snorted.

"Still thinks I'm dim, I see," the Doctor said to Donna. "Thinks I don't know my own lover enough to know when it's not her. I love that he thinks I'm thick, that's why I keep defeating his idiotic arse time and again. But anyway...who are you then?" he said to Mara.

She told him her name, the Doctor nodded.

"And how long have you been with him?" he said.

"Not long, he met me and Sebessa at a pub on another planet."

"And Sebessa is…"

Mara explained what she knew about the situation and what had happened to Donna when the Alternate Doctor had knocked her unconscious. After twenty minutes, she had nothing more to say and fell silent. To her relief, the Doctor remained calm and allowed her to speak although Donna was shooting daggers at her. The Doctor thought for a moment before speaking.

"So, where does that leave us then?" the Doctor said.

"What do you mean?" Mara said.

"I mean, whose side are you on? Are you telling me this because you want to help us get Rose back or are you telling me this because you know it was useless to keep up the charade any longer."

"I'd like to help," Mara said hesitantly.

"But…" the Doctor said. "I sense there's a but after that."

"But I want your protection if I do."

"Lady, if you don't help us get Rose back, you'll need protection all right but it'll be from us," Donna growled.

The Doctor held up a hand and Donna calmed down.

"I will try to protect you to the best of my ability as long as you're sincere but if this is some trick and you're plotting behind our backs, I will sic Donna on you."

"Oi, I'm not a pit bull, Space Man," Donna said.

"Sorry, I will turn Donna loose in a locked room with you and see if you emerge from it alive or not," the Doctor said.

"And believe me, I will wring your neck with my bare hands if something's happened to her," Donna growled.

"And if she's dead or maimed or he did something to scar her forever…"

The Doctor came in close to Mara and she swallowed hard, sensing the power that radiated from him and the menace in his eyes. Looking at his dark eyes, she realized why her people feared him so much. She also realized that even though he had sweet to her, in a heartbeat he could become exactly like his alter ego and she knew it would be unwise to defy him.

"So…where is she then?" the Doctor said, his eyes locked with hers.

"In his TARDIS, I think, but that thing's like a fortress, you won't be able to get inside."

A smirk spread over the Doctor's face.

"Won't be able to get inside? His TARDIS is nearly identical to mine. You don't think I would be capable of breaking into a ship I know extremely intimately?"

"But he probably has traps inside it."

"And I probably know how to disable those as well. I don't care what obstacles lay in wait for me. I'm getting Rose back and this time is the last time because I am fed up with him stalking her. I'm doing something to permanently stop him, even if that means killing him."

"Then you really are the Widow Maker my people spoke of?" Mara said.

"I'm many things to many people and I have many different names. I'm not familiar with Widow Maker but I've killed many people in my lifetimes. I don't enjoy it but sometimes it must be done. That doesn't mean I'm evil. Now…what about you? Are you evil?"

"No…I mean, I don't think of myself as evil," Mara said.

"Most people don't think of themselves as evil, even if they are. Have you done anything that would be considered evil in your life?"

"No, I don't think so," Mara said. "I'm a warrior among my people and I've fought in a couple of wars but the people I killed were attacking our villages and threatening our way of life. I don't consider that evil since I was defending my planet and people."

"No, I don't either since I did the same several years ago," the Doctor said. "I'm willing to give you a chance to help me but I'm warning you again. Don't double-cross me or I will show you my Widow Maker side. Is that clear?"

Mara swallowed hard and nodded. The Doctor looked at Donna.

"Donna, stay here and keep your mobile with you. I'll ring you if I need your help but I'd rather you stay in here so I don't have to worry about you being nabbed as well."

Donna nodded and the Doctor turned his attention back to Mara.

"Come with me, I need a few things from my lab and then you're going to lead me to my double's TARDIS."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

While Rose waited for the Alternate Doctor to return, she tried to remain calm and think of a strategy for eventually escaping. She had the advantage of having a captor who acted and thought in a similar way to her Doctor and she knew that she could keep the Alternate Doctor's interest by stroking his ego and warming up to him. She wondered though if the layout of this TARDIS was similar to her own. She'd only been in a few rooms and she was afraid if there was a time she needed to hide she might end up lost going through the labyrinthine corridors. She figured that might not work anyway since she knew the TARDIS would respond to the Doctor the way her own Doctor's TARDIS did and the moment she tried to hide the Alternate Doctor could simply ask the TARDIS to teleport her back to him. She wondered if there was a way to get a message to her Doctor about her being held captive and the location of the TARDIS. She couldn't use the TARDIS monitor since she figured the TARDIS would say something to the Alternate Doctor and her mind link was useless inside her. She had to find a way to get outside long enough to establish contact but even then it would be risky since now her captor knew about the mind link and would probably be aware of any telepathic communications coming from her.

She cursed softly and shook her head. She hated being stuck in a situation like this and not having a clear answer about how to proceed. She didn't want to stay long enough for the Alternate Doctor to do something like put a chip in her or brainwash her and turn her against her lover but she had to be careful so the Alternate Doctor would let his guard down long enough for her to give her an advantage. She wondered if the Doctor had discovered she was missing yet and she felt a flush of anger thinking of the Doctor lying with a woman who was pretending to be her.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the door opened and she tried to appear casual as her captor entered the room carrying a large brown sack in his hand. Her heart raced as she tried not to imagine what this gift for her might be and she hoped to God it wasn't some kind of perverted sex toy that he was eager to try out. She smiled as sweetly as she could while the Alternate Doctor shut the door behind him and came over to the bed.

"If you're going to become my companion," he said, putting the sack on the bed near her and opening it up, "you're going to have the look the part. Especially if you're going to become an assassin."

He unlocked Rose from her shackles and helped her to sit up. Once that was done, he reached in to the sack and Rose groaned silently when he pulled out a shiny black lycra bodysuit that she wouldn't be caught dead in. The Alternate Doctor stepped away from the bed and held it up so she could see it. It would cover her arms and legs down to her wrists and ankles and Rose noticed that up top there was a plunging neckline which she suspected would show a good amount of her cleavage. She began to wonder if her Doctor ever fantasized about her being in something like this since this was his double. He never asked her to wear a lycra bodysuit but that didn't mean he didn't dream about her in one.

"Now, I know you might resist putting this one but this outfit is actually quite comfy," the Alternate Doctor said. "More so than the jeans and t-shirt you've been wearing. If you're going to be an assassin, you need both comfort and freedom of movement and this provides both."

"Not to mention it shows off my body," Rose said.

"Well, yes, I can't pretend I won't enjoy seeing you in it. After all, I do like skin tight outfits but I think you'll like it as well. Would you?"

He handed it out to her and Rose got up from the bed and took it. She hesitated a moment, sat back down on the bed and eased into the bodysuit. The lycra was easier to get on her body than she anticipated and she stood up as she worked it up her body. When she finished, she adjusted it so it fit in the correct places and stood there for a moment while the Alternate Doctor admired her silently. She had to admit the bodysuit fit her like a second skin and was extremely comfortable. She moved her arms and legs, testing it and found that the lycra moved with her with no chafing or discomfort.

"Do you like it?" the Alternate Doctor said.

"Yeah, it fits better than I thought it would," Rose said.

"See, I do know a lot more than you think I do about the female body," the Alternate Doctor said.

Rose didn't doubt that but she kept silent while the Alternate Doctor walked around her body, admiring it from every angle. He came around to the front and took her hands, lifting them while he examined her front.

"Yes, this fits perfectly. I'm also a good judge of women's sizes," he said to her. "I bet my double never considered putting you in something like this, eh?"

"Um…no, he didn't," Rose said.

"See. This is why he's not taking full advantage of you. You look gorgeous in this and frumpy in that rubbish," he said, waving a dismissive hand at her clothes on the bed. "I'm sure it never crossed Doofus's mind that a body like this is for showing off, not for hiding but he probably thinks it's perverted and sinful to have his woman in a clingy bodysuit."

Rose said nothing to that, figuring it was because Rose never expressed any interest before in wearing a bodysuit. She figured her Doctor wouldn't mind seeing her in something like this but most of the time they were too busy saving the universe to play sexual fashion show with one another.

"I do have some shoes for you to wear with this," he said to her. "Same material as the suit but firmer. However, the shoes are light and have excellent traction. I also have gloves and a hood that I will give to you eventually but for the moment, come with me. I want to show you something else."

He took Rose's hand and she followed him. They walked down several corridors until they came to a steel door. Beside the door was a keypad and the Alternate Doctor punched in a code. The door slid open silently and he led Rose inside. The room was huge, about half the size of a football field, with tatami mats covering the floor.

"This is my dojo, if you will. Place where I train and I s'pose will now train my companions now that I'm following the Boy Scout's lead," the Alternate Doctor said. "This is where I'll train you. Tell me, has your Doctor ever taught you to fight?"

"Yes," Rose said.

"What has he taught you?"

"Well…mostly self defense, some karate moves," she said.

"That's it? Doofus expects you to follow him into danger and doesn't give you the training to face it?" the Alternate Doctor said. "Honestly, Rose, it amazes me that you're still standing here in one piece. I can train you more intensely than that, give you some real skills. Has Dingle Dork ever trained you on the use of weapons?"

"A bit on the staff," Rose said sheepishly.

"Why the moron has managed to beat me in the past, I'll never know," the Alternate Doctor muttered as he led Rose over to the right side of the room. "Well," he said to Rose when they reached the wall. "That will also become a part of your training."

He opened a panel in the wall and keyed in another code on another keypad. A door hidden in the wall slid back and Rose gasped when they stepped into a large armory with weapons of every size and description. Her mind began to work overtime as she looked at the weapons and she wondered if she could be left alone long enough to get her hands on some of them. She hadn't been entirely truthful with her captor. The Doctor had trained her more extensively than she let on and had trained her in the use of several weapons for defensive purposes, including the rather large samurai sword mounted on the wall to her left. She gazed at it, wondering if she could find time to get in here and take it. She had watched the Alternate Doctor input the code and it was fairly simple. She could remember it and come back when she had an opportunity.

As if reading her mind, the Alternate Doctor walked over and took down the samurai sword. He pulled the sword slightly out of its scabbard and she noticed part of a Chinese dragon was etched into the end of the blade.

"This is the prize of my collection," he said to her as he walked to her side. "I trained with several samurai masters and I managed to become proficient enough to earn my own katana. This is from the 17th century, an antique."

"It's beautiful," Rose said as he slid the sword out further to show her all of the dragon.

Then without warning, he whipped the sword out and Rose gasped when the end of the blade was touching her jugular vein. In a matter of seconds, the Alternate Doctor had not only pulled the katana out and put it against her but his demeanor turned from friendly to murderous.

"I'm not a fool, Rose," he growled at her. "I can see your little ape mind working and I know you're thinking you can sneak back in here at some point and pinch one of these weapons to use against me. I'd strongly advise against that."

Holding the blade against her neck, he leaned in and gazed into her eyes. Rose swallowed hard when his one good eye blazed anger at her.

"Have you ever heard of Death by a Thousand Cuts?" the Alternate Doctor said.

Rose sincerely shook her head, trying to keep calm. An evil grin spread over the Time Lord's face.

"Oh, it's a very nasty form of execution that the Japanese came up with," he purred. "You see, they would tie up a condemned criminal and slowly cut off body parts, piece by piece, with a sharp sword until the victim died. And they did it in a way that the body was almost completely gone before the poor bastard mercifully died. I've also been trained how to do that, Rose, and I won't hesitate to do it to you if you betray me. I will not be fucked over by an ape and as enchanting as you are, you will find yourself at the business end of this katana if you decide to do that. And just for added measure, I'll film the execution and make sure the Boy Scout gets it so he can enjoy every single moment of your screams as you're dismantled piece by piece. So take heed, ape, this is your one and only warning about betrayal. Got it?"

Rose nodded, too scared to say anything. The Alternate Doctor didn't move for a moment, keeping the sword against her neck while his eye bored into her and he savored the fearful expression on her face. Then suddenly, he smiled warmly and took the katana away from her neck.

"Good, glad we got that out of the way then," he said cheerfully as he picked the scabbard off the floor and sheathed his sword. "I don't have very many rules but the ones I do have will be obeyed to the letter."

Rose tried to calm her rapidly beating heart while the Alternate Doctor casually put the sword back.

"Now," he said when he finished and turned around. "Next order of business is meeting your new teammate, Sabessa. Shall we?"

Rose nodded and took his hand. She hazarded one last look back at the weapons before the Alternate Doctor led her out of the room and closed the door.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Mara and the Doctor walked through the woods while she led him back to the other Doctor's TARDIS. So far, the Doctor hadn't said anything to her as he walked behind her with his hands in his pockets. The tension between them was thick and Mara felt uncomfortable since she sensed that the Time Lord was staring directly at her. Finally, she couldn't take any more of the eyes on her and she stopped and turned to him.

"Would you quit glaring at me, you're making me uncomfortable," she said.

"I'm just making sure you don't run off or do something underhanded," the Doctor said casually. "I don't trust you, Mara."

"I'm leading you to the TARDIS, aren't I?"

The Doctor shrugged.

"Maybe you are and maybe you aren't. I haven't lived this long by being a naïve fool. You sided with my enemy and now you claim to be helping me so I'm reserving judgment until your true intentions come to light. Now…are you going to continue leading me to the other TARDIS?"

"Are you sure you can protect me from him?" Mara said.

"I will protect him as well as I can unless you turn against me and then it's open season for you, I'm afraid. Now…are we going to continue?"

Mara sighed and turned back around. The Doctor strolled along behind her while she navigated her way through the woods. Fifteen minutes later, she reached the spot where she'd last seen the TARDIS and stopped. She looked around in confusion when she didn't see it.

"Are my beady eyes bothering you again?" she heard the Doctor say.

She turned to him and saw the impatient look on his face.

"No, this is the spot," Mara said.

The Doctor looked around for a moment before his eyes settled on hers again.

"Funny, I don't see it," the Doctor said.

"I swear to you, this is where I last saw it," Mara said as she noticed anger creeping onto his face.

The Doctor sighed, whipped out his sonic screwdriver and scanned around him. He glanced at the readings and lowered the screwdriver.

"According to this, there's no TARDIS here," he said. "Perhaps you're mistaken about the location then?"

"I thought this was where I last saw it," Mara said, looking around.

She pointed to a tree that was nearly split in half.

"Yeah, I remember that tree, this is the spot," she said.

"Well…my screwdriver says otherwise," the Doctor said.

"Well are you sure that screwdriver is accurate?" Mara said in a testy voice.

"My screwdriver is capable of picking up the vibration a TARDIS gives out. There's no vibration here," the Doctor said in a condescending voice. "Perhaps that is the wrong tree…or, more likely, you're having me on and leading me on a wild goose chase to buy time for your Doctor to get away."

His eyes bored into hers and she gulped and shook her head.

"No, I swear this is the spot," she said adamantly. "I said I'd help you and I will."

"Well, he's gone now so any ideas on where he might have gone?" the Doctor said.

"I s'pose back to the hotel room in the pub," she said.

"You don't sound sure."

"No, I'm not sure. All I know is he wanted me to impersonate Rose and follow you, he didn't say anything else."

The Doctor snickered and Mara narrowed her eyes.

"What's so funny?" she said.

"What's funny is your lover, or whatever the hell he is to you, seems to have left you high and dry," the Doctor said, leaning back against a tree. "He told you to come find me and then gave you no instructions on what to do once you got there, apart from follow me and make sure I didn't cotton on to the fact that Rose was gone. Also didn't say if he'd come get you if you got into trouble. And lo and behold, you got into trouble and he's swanned off with his prize. What I think he did, my dear, is dumped you in my lap so he could concentrate on Rose without you breathing down his neck. That's why I'm laughing. If you thought my double had any intentions of being your boyfriend, this oughta dispel them once and for all."

"And I suppose you're better than him, Widow Maker," Mara spat out.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes.

"I'm pretty sure I haven't committed the level of atrocities that he has," he said, folding his arms over his chest. "I said before that many cultures give me unpleasant names like that and it's because most of them are sore that I came in and stopped their illicit activities. How do your people know me?"

"From the Time War," Mara said.

"And what is the name of your people?"

Mara gave him a look of disbelief. The Doctor shrugged.

"There are several alien species that have blue skin and white hair which is why I asked."

Mara was intrigued by that and wondered what the other species were called but she saw the look on the Doctor's face and knew he was waiting for her to answer.

"The Mollon," she said.

"Ah, I see," the Doctor said, leaning back up. "It becomes clear."

"What becomes clear?" Mara said with a frown.

"My dear, do you know what your people were doing during the Time War?" he said.

"Helping fight it?"

She was shocked when the Doctor let out a harsh, barking laugh at that followed by a snigger. She became defensive and crossed her arms.

"Why are you laughing now?"

"I'm laughing because you are as far from the truth as a Dalek is from a loving feeling," the Doctor said. "They never fought the Time War."

"Yes, they did," Mara said quickly.

"No. They didn't. They were smugglers and gun runners hired by those who decided to ally themselves with the Daleks so they could get back at their neighbors. They were smuggling weapons to enemy planets for a tidy profit. I figured out what was happening and I and some of the real fighters put a stop to them. I suspect my little nickname was borne out of bitterness at having been cut off from their profits."

"That's not what we were taught in school," Mara said.

"I should think not, it doesn't reflect too well on your people if you're learning that they stole weapons from other civilizations and sold them off. Quite a few people were left shorthanded and defenseless because their weapons went to your people to be sold off. That's partly the reason why we had trouble holding back the Daleks on some of the planets. So…I'm afraid you've been misinformed. Not your fault, mind, if your educational system is telling you this. You're young so I have a feeling you weren't even born when the Time War was being fought. But this is why you need to look into things and question what you hear rather than accepting everything blindly. I'm not the bad guy here, the other Doctor is. And if I told you some of the things he did to me and Rose, your long hair would curl up to your scalp. Rose, especially, has been abused and degraded by that bastard and I'm not in the mood to see more abuse heaped on her so…how do we go about finding his TARDIS?"

"I s'pose we could go back to the pub and question the barkeep?" Mara said.

"Sounds as good a plan as any. Follow…"

He trailed off into silence. Mara was about to ask what was wrong when the Doctor held up his hand and put his finger to his lips. Then he suddenly dropped down and rolled towards Mara as a silver robot jumped down from the tree onto the spot where he'd been standing. The Doctor leapt to his feet and told Mara to run before the faceless robot lunged at him and began attacking.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

(Twenty five minutes earlier…)

"Sabessa, my dear…"

Sabessa was sitting on the chair near the console when she heard the Alternate Doctor calling her name. She smiled, got up and froze when she saw Rose following him into the room. Her confusion deepened when she noticed Rose was free of any restraints and the two of them were holding hands as they came towards her.

"Um…I thought she was your prisoner," Sabessa said, pointing to Rose.

"She had a change of heart and decided to switch to our side," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Oh really?" Sabessa said, giving Rose a dubious look. "That was fast, don't you think?"

"Rose understood the hopelessness of her situation and I gave her the option to become my assassin and lover so I have been magnanimous and given her a chance."

Sabessa bristled when he said lover and narrowed her eyes as she came up to Rose. Rose met her gaze bravely while Sabessa stared her down.

"So, you've decided to join our side," Sabessa said.

"Yes, I have," Rose said.

Sabessa snorted at that and continued to stare at her while her claws slowly slid out of her fingers. Rose didn't flinch as she returned the stare. The Alternate Doctor looked from one to the other and chuckled.

"Ladies, ladies, no need for this. We're all on the same side now," he said. "There's no need for jealous catfights. I enjoy a threesome as much as the next person."

"Somehow, I don't think your new concubine enjoys beastiality," Sabessa said.

"But she's an ape so isn't it beastiality on your part?" the Alternate Doctor said to her. "Now…the two of you be good while I do a quick scan of the surroundings and make sure Dopey Doofus the Wonder Wanker hasn't found us yet."

He walked to the monitor but the two women stood their ground and glared at each other. Rose smirked when Sabessa growled low in her throat.

"What's wrong, love, am I taking your place?" Rose said sweetly.

"I don't believe for one second you're abandoning your Doctor," Sabessa said. "You're up to something and when I find out the truth."

She showed Rose the claws on her right hand. Rose glanced at them calmly before she locked eyes with Sabessa. Sabessa hissed at her and came closer until her snout was inches from Rose's nose.

"Just watch yourself," she growled at her. "I'll be watching you closely and the moment you show any sign of deceit, you're cat food."

"I wouldn't try it if I were you, puss," Rose said.

Sabessa hissed at her and was about to scratch her face but the Alternate Doctor commanded her to stop.

"I don't like being disobeyed when I give an order," he said to them. "I said stop and I meant it. Now leave her alone before I turn you into cat food. Rose, come here by me, I have something I want to show you."

Rose smirked at Sabessa before walking over to the Alternate Doctor's side. Sabessa let out one more hiss and slammed her butt back down in the chair, glaring balefully at Rose while she stood at the Alternate Doctor's side. Rose tried to hide her emotions when she noticed that the readings on the monitor indicated the Doctor was drawing near to their position and Mara was with him. She glanced at the Alternate Doctor who was now staring at the monitor in confusion.

"Mara is with him?" he muttered.

He stared at the monitor and then slowly anger replaced his confused look.

"What's wrong, dear?" Sabessa said from her spot in the chair.

"Oh, she better not have," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Better not have what?" Sabessa said.

"The Doctor is coming towards us and Mara is with him," the Alternate Doctor said to her.

"Oh?" Sabessa said sweetly. "So, the other girlfriend must have gotten angry when you dumped her for the ape and led him here, is that it?"

The Alternate Doctor clenched his fist and Rose jumped when he slammed it on the rim of his console.

"I just got done saying I won't tolerate betrayal!" he yelled.

"You don't know that," Rose said, trying to calm him down before he attacked her out of anger. "She might be leading him into a trap."

The Alternate Doctor breathed angrily out his nose while he thought that over.

"Perhaps, but I can't take that chance. He's coming and we have to move before he finds us. I'll just leave a little surprise for him so we'll have time to get away."

He commanded the TARDIS to bring him a training robot and put it in the console room. There was a flash and a silver faceless robot appeared near them. Rose watched with a sinking feeling while the Alternate Doctor walked over to it, opened up a panel in it's back and quickly programmed it. Once that was finished, the Alternate Doctor walked with it to the front door, opened it and let it out before closing the door behind it.

"There, that should keep him busy," the Alternate Doctor said, walking back to the console. "Now…let's see, first I'll get us into the vortex and then I'll find a location for us so we'll have some privacy."

Rose kept her face passive but inside her stomach was churning knowing that he was taking her someplace else far away from her Doctor. She felt her spirits sink as the Alternate Doctor went around the console, taking the TARDIS into the vortex.

(Present time…)

"Mara, get back, get away from here," the Doctor said as he grappled with the robot.

"I can't just leave you here!" Mara said.

"I'll be fine, just get away from here before this thing targets you next," the Doctor said.

"Not a chance," Mara said.

She ran up to the robot and kicked it off the Doctor. The Doctor leapt up at the same time as the robot. They gasped when his hand transformed into a dart gun and he started shooting darts at them. The two of them ran into the trees at different points while the robot pursued them. Mara looked around and found a large limb lying by a nearby tree.

"You were looking out for me, Time Lord, and now I'll do the same for you," Mara said as she ran to it and snatched it up.

She turned and looked around but the robot wasn't around. Cursing, she realized it must have gone after the Doctor and she ran diagonally through the woods, going towards where the Doctor had run. She spied the robot after a few minutes and used some low tree limbs to scramble up a tree. She hopped from tree to tree; trying to get above the robot who she figured was searching for the Doctor. Finally, she got above its head and with a yell of rage; she leapt down and slammed the limb into its head. There was a loud clang and the robot staggered back but Mara left it no room to regroup as she kept on hitting it, knocking it into a nearby tree. She tried to destroy it but all she succeeded in doing was knocking its thin arms off its body. She kicked it and then noticed the outline of a panel on its back. While the robot tried to regroup, she fell on it, opened the hatch and grabbed a random batch of wiring. She pulled the wires out of their holes and breathed a sigh of relief when the robot jerked several times and died. She waited a moment; limb raised above her head for the robot to rise up and then lowered the limb when it remained motionless. She got off it and looked around.

"Doctor?" she yelled. "Doctor, I got it! Where are you?"

She frowned when she didn't hear him answer back.

"Oh for god's sake, Doctor, surely you're not that angry about me disobeying you," she muttered as she walked back towards the clearing.

As she walked, she called out to the Doctor. After several tries with no response, her heart began to beat rapidly in fear and she walked faster.

"Doctor, please answer me!" she yelled as she walked.

Then she walked through a cluster of trees and froze in horror when several feet in front of her the Doctor was lying on the ground, motionless with his eyes staring up at the sky.

"Oh gods, no!" Mara said, praying that he wasn't dead as she ran to him.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

Mara was terrified as she knelt beside the unmoving body of the Doctor. His eyes were fixed on the sky and didn't respond when Mara waved a hand in front of them. Swallowing hard, she lowered her head to his face and breathed a sigh of relief when she heard his breathing. Confused, she looked at him and snapped her fingers but he still didn't deviate from the fixed gaze stare. She looked him over and then noticed a thin piece of metal sticking out of the side of his neck. She pulled it out and examined it.

"Blow gun dart," she said. "You're still breathing but you can't move, must have had some paralyzing agent on it. Damn."

She threw it away in disgust and leaned back over the Doctor's face.

"Doctor, can you move any part of your body at all?" she asked him.

There was no response and she cursed as she sat back up. She sat there for a moment trying to think what she could do. Then she had a thought. She remembered him telling Donna he'd call her on the mobile if he needed her help. He searched his pockets for anything resembling a communicator and found the mobile in his right jacket pocket. She examined it from all sides before opening it up. She started pushing buttons, trying to find a way to contact Donna. Then by chance, she reached the menu listing all people who had their phone numbers programmed into the mobile. She scrolled down, found what she thought was Donna's name and selected it. She saw a phone number and hit the call button. To her relief, the phone started dialing the number. She heard someone answer it.

"Doctor?" Donna said.

"This is Mara," she said.

There was a short silence.

"Where's the Doctor?" Donna said angrily. "What'd you do with him?"

"I haven't done anything, alright? But we were attacked by some sort of robot and the Doctor was hit with a paralyzing dart. He's alive but he can't move. Is there something you can do?"

"Sorry, I'm not a doctor. I have no idea what to do," Donna said.

"Well, can you find something in the TARDIS that might help him? I don't think I can carry him all the way back to the TARDIS and I don't want to leave him lying here in case something else attacks us."

"Wait a tic, just don't hang up. I'm gonna try asking the TARDIS what to do."

Mara lowered the phone to her lap and bent over the Doctor.

"Doctor, hang on, your friend is trying to find a way to help you," she said to him.

The Doctor didn't respond and she sighed when he continued looking blankly up at the sky.

"I don't know if you can hear me but I realize now they were wrong about you," she said to him. "I just hope you realize that I'm on your side now. You're nothing like your double, that's for sure."

She stared at him for several seconds before speaking again.

"You know, I was hoping that I could continue to impersonate Rose and let the real Rose stay with the other you so you'd end up loving me. But Rose doesn't deserve to be with that asshole and I will do anything to help you get her back. I just hope you hear this and forgive me for deceiving you and Donna. I'd love to be friends with you, if you don't mind that."

"Mara?"

Mara looked down at the mobile when she heard Donna's voice and picked it up again.

"Yes?" she said.

"Hang on, we're coming to you," Donna said.

"It'll take awhile, we traveled far since we left and…"

She trailed off when she heard a wheeze and the hand holding the phone slowly lowered to her lap when she saw the TARDIS materialize nearby. She sat beside the Doctor in shock as the front door opened and Donna stuck her head outside.

"You came to us?" Mara said.

"Yeah, TARDIS locked in on Alien Boy and came here," Donna said, stepping outside with a small black bottle in her hand. "This bottle also appeared when I asked if she had an antidote for a paralyzing dart so I'm assuming that's what it is."

She shut the front door, walked up to the Doctor's side and looked down at him.

"Get in a spot of trouble, ya stupid git?" Donna said to the Doctor. "Honestly, no one can leave you alone for two minutes without having to come to your aid. Good job I was still in your TARDIS to come save your hide otherwise you'd be out here forever."

She noticed the shocked expression on Mara's face and winked.

"Don't worry, I talk to him like this all the time," she said, kneeling beside him. "Now, let's see what this stuff is."

She unscrewed the lid and looked in. She smelled it and jerked her head back as she made a face.

"Ugh, glad it's not me drinking this," she said. "Least I hope you're s'posed to drink it."

"You don't know how to use it?" Mara said.

"Nope, we'll just pour it down his gullet and hope for the best. Lift his head a bit for me."

Mara lifted his head slightly and Donna put her fingers in his mouth, parting his lips. Mara helped her hold it open with her free hand and Donna poured a small amount of the liquid into his mouth. They closed his mouth and Mara lowered his head back to the ground.

"Do you think we gave him enough?" Mara said.

"Dunno, we'll wait a few minutes and if nothing happens, I'll give him a bit more," Donna said.

They stared at his face. Mara glanced at Donna and swallowed hard, summoning up the courage to speak.

"Um…listen, the Doctor told me what my people did during the Time War which is different than what I was taught in school," she said. "I was wrong about him and I know he's telling the truth because he tried to protect me when the robot started attacking. He's not like the other Doctor and I'm sorry I had a hand in kidnapping Rose and impersonating her. I want to make amends and help and I don't want either of you being mad at me. I'm sorry. I really am."

Donna smiled at that and took her hand.

"Look, if there's one thing I learned being with the Doctor, it's that he's all about giving people second chances, otherwise I wouldn't be here now. I told him before I didn't want to travel with him but after he left, I changed my mind and when I found him again, he let me come with him and Rose, even though he could have said no so he could be alone with his girlfriend. If you were lied to growing up, love, then I can understand your misguided hatred of him. If the Doctor can forgive, I can as well and you just proved by doing all this that you're on our side. I accept your apology."

Mara smiled and she patted her hand. Donna noticed that the mobile was still on so she took it from her, turned it off and put it back in the Doctor's jacket pocket. Then she pointed at his face when she noticed his face twitching. Both of them leaned in and watched as the Doctor slowly blinked his eyes and began to move them around.

"Bout time you woke up," Donna said when the Doctor's eyes shifted to her.

The Doctor began to blink rapidly.

"What's he doing?" Mara said.

"Probably trying to communicate and I have no bloody clue what he's trying to say because I don't speak eye blink."

The Doctor eyed her and Donna shrugged.

"I don't know what you're saying, Space Boy, you're gonna have to wait till you can speak properly," she said.

The Doctor looked at Mara and winked at her. Then his face muscles began to unfreeze and he slowly moved them until he could get his mouth to open.

"Muh," he said, trying to speak to them. "Muh, muh…"

"Looks like he's coming back to life from the head on down," Donna said, staring at his immobile body.

"Muh…Maaa…raaa," he finally got out.

"Yes?" Mara said.

The Doctor worked his mouth trying to get it to work better.

"Th…ank y...ou," he said slowly to Mara.

"You're welcome," Mara said while Donna smiled.

"Y...ou…a…re…fr…iend," the Doctor said.

"See, told ya," Donna said to Mara when she saw the overjoyed look on Mara's face.

A minute later, the Doctor began to move his neck.

"Bugger," he said, finally able to speak at a normal rate, "this is taking forever."

"Should we give you more?" Donna asked.

"No, I just think it'll take a few minutes to get unstuck again," the Doctor said. "I did hear what you said, Mara, and I'm glad you've switched sides. Donna's right. I do believe in second chances and you've proven yourself by helping me here. Thank you, my friend."

He smiled when Mara's eyes misted over and gave her another wink. He then looked at Donna.

"And I do not get into trouble the moment I go out the door," he said to her while Mara giggled.

"The hell you don't, I don't know how many times I've had to save you from things."

"You haven't been with me that long, what exactly have you been saving me from then?" the Doctor said while Donna gave him an innocent look. "Quit fibbing, Noble, it doesn't become you."

"Yeah, well, rigor mortis doesn't become you either," Donna said.

The Doctor looked at Mara.

"You get used to her after awhile, trust me," he said while Donna swatted his arm. "She's a bit gruff but she's got a heart of gold."

After ten minutes, the Doctor was able to move his body enough to where he could stand up with support. Donna and Mara helped him to his feet and stood on either side of him. The Doctor snapped his fingers and the door opened. Using them for support, the Doctor walked back inside his TARDIS and headed towards the jump seat.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

The Doctor rested a few minutes until he had the strength to stand on his own while Mara and Donna waited by the console. Then he slowly got up and moved his leaden legs to the console, grabbing the rim of it for support.

"Better keep this handy," the Doctor said to Donna as he pointed to the antidote in her hand. "I'm assuming that was the Doctor's plaything and I'm sure he has more of them. Better safe than sorry. Now we were discussing perhaps going back to the pub when all this happened. Unless you have any idea where he might have gone, Mara?"

"I don't know, honestly. We met him in a pub and then Sabessa and me came here."

The Doctor tapped his fingers on the rim of the console while he thought.

"Doubtful he took Rose back to his room, that would be too obvious," he said. "He's probably in his TARDIS now but…even if he's scarpered, I'm sure he'll be back. I've been interfering too much in his affairs and I doubt he'll let me keep on breathing. Besides, he has Rose and if there's one thing he likes doing it's showing off what he's doing to her to me."

"What about his room then?" Donna said. "Maybe he left some clue there?"

"Perhaps, that would be our best bet for the moment since we have no idea where they went."

The Doctor thought for a moment and then excused himself, telling his friends to stay put. He ran out of the room. Several minutes went by and she and Donna chatted. They noticed someone coming through the back door and Mara gasped when she saw the Alternate Doctor.

"No, it can't be you," Mara said.

"Easy, it's just me," the Doctor said. "I decided to masquerade as my other self when we go to the pub so I won't have any trouble going to his room. It's just makeup. I roughed up my face a bit and added a few fake scars and added a black suit and trainers to complete the look. Sorry to startle you but at least I know it looks realistic. Now, I was thinking you could pose as my concubines so you could help me search. Just let me do the talking and act all randy and we'll be in his room in no time."

"Doctor, I think you should know something," Donna said. "Mara, tell him how old you are."

"Twelve," she said.

The Doctor was taken aback.

"You look older than that," he said.

"Yes, my people are like that. We look older than we are," she said.

The Doctor came near to her.

"Wait, you're only twelve and you were having sex with him?" he said.

Mara nodded and the Doctor fought to keep his anger in check.

"Where are your parents?" he said to her.

"They gave me up two years ago. We lost everything in a fire and they couldn't afford to feed me and my brothers and sisters so they sold us to slavers to work as prostitutes. It's how I met Sabessa. I look older than I am so no one really brought up my age."

"Does he know how old you are?" the Doctor asked her.

"No. He never asked me. He just took me and Sabessa back to his hotel room."

"Would he care if he knew how old she really was?" Donna said.

"Probably not," the Doctor said angrily. "I don't think there are too many things my double wouldn't do. The depraved bastard doesn't seem to have too many boundaries. What has he done to you?"

Mara described the rough night of sex they had and Donna felt her stomach lurch while the Doctor could barely keep his anger from exploding. He shook his head when she was done.

"I'm sorry you got mixed up with the likes of him," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry your parents had to sell you in the first place, surely there were other options besides selling you into sex slavery but it's too late for that now. You're here and I promise I'll find a better place for you to go than a street corner after all this is over."

He smiled when she thanked him and squeezed her shoulder.

"I'm glad you don't hate me," Mara said to him.

"Nah, I don't hate you," the Doctor said.

"But you hate my people," Mara said.

"No, I hate the smugglers and that was a very small percentage of your planet's population. I don't hate your world. Truth be told, up until now I haven't had much interaction with it. I told you we're friends and unlike my bastard double, I hold true to my word."

"Can I go with you?" Mara said. "The barkeep saw me earlier and it might help convince him you're the other Doctor."

"Yes, although I don't like treating you as my concubine, even if it is pretend," he said. "Girl your age needs to be doing children's things not having sex. Although, you apparently know how to fight."

"Yes, my people are trained to do that from an early age," she said.

"Then that'll come in handy," the Doctor said. "So…what I want you both to do is get tarted up a bit and we'll go down the pub."

Maza looked over when he heard laughter and grinned when the Doctor approached the pub counter with Donna and Mara beside him. Both women had dressed up in tight leather outfits and put on lots of makeup so they looked slutty. They sauntered up to the counter and Maza chuckled.

"Nice to see you back, mate," he said. "Been havin' fun?"

"Always," the Doctor said with a wink. "but I think we should go upstairs now and continue the fun, eh?"

Maza patted his back and wished him good luck. The three of them walked to the stairs and went up. On the way up, the Doctor looked at Mara.

"Mara, he had a trolley filled with different things he apparently used for sex. One of them was hydrochloric acid. Please tell me he didn't use that on you."

Mara nodded and both the Doctor and Donna cursed.

"I'm gonna use it on him the next time I see him," Donna growled as she clenched her fists.

"He made me pretend to be Rose too when we had sex. That's where he got the idea for me to be her."

The Doctor and Donna shared a look before the Doctor used his screwdriver to unlock the door to Alternate Doctor's room. The room looked pretty much the same as before but the Doctor asked Mara to help him look before he and Donna split up and searched.

"So…" the Doctor said as he and Mara lifted up the mattress, "what you said when I was paralyzed about falling in love with me, is that true?"

Mara nodded shyly and the Doctor chuckled as they looked under the mattress and saw nothing.

"I s'pose since my mum and dad got rid of me, I've been looking for someone to love and when I saw you looking at me when I was Rose, I wanted to be her because I've never seen anyone look at someone the way you looked at her."

The Doctor smiled at that and kissed her forehead.

"I'll take you somewhere where you have a chance to find someone to love like that," he said to her. "I'm not about to leave you out on the streets where you can be harmed and taken advantage of. You deserve better than that."

"Can't I come with you? Not as your lover but just help you like Donna does."

"Well…normally I don't take someone as young as you but you have shown you're very capable of taking care of yourself so let me think it over, okay?"

Mara nodded and the Doctor patted her on the shoulder as they went to look in another part of the room.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

"Blast," the Doctor said when their search turned up nothing and they all sat down on the bed.

"So…any more ideas?" the Doctor said.

"Mara, did the other Doctor give you a way to contact him?" Donna asked her.

"No."

"I think he might have figured out she was a child and dumped her here so he could have Rose," the Doctor said. "Seems a bit odd to leave her with us and not have a way for her to contact her when she needed him."

"Do you think he'll come back?" Mara asked.

"Probably. Like I said, he won't let me leave here alive if he can help it. I'm sure he's gone somewhere to do things to Rose and come back and taunt me with her."

"Could the TARDIS track him?" Donna said.

"Well, not if his TARDIS is cloaked but they'd have to take down the cloaking to go back in the vortex. If we enter the vortex, she might be able to lock on to him, I believe it is. It's worth a shot."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Donna said.

The Doctor patted Mara's leg before all of them stood up and headed for the door.

Meanwhile, the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS was still in the vortex. He stood at the console, drumming his fingers on it while Rose stood nearby. Sabessa sat in the chair, arms crossed over her chest, while she glared at Rose. Rose ignored her while she tried to think of a way to get the Alternate Doctor to turn the TARDIS around and go back. Then she felt the Alternate Doctor grab her arm and she looked at him.

"Come with me for a moment. I need your assistance," he said to her.

Rose nodded and walked with him out of the room while Sabessa growled deep in her throat at them. She walked with him back to his bedroom and froze at the door.

"Come on, Rose, need a quickie," he said, taking her hand.

"No, I don't want to do that."

She gasped when the Alternate Doctor jerked her arm roughly.

"I don't give a fuck what you don't want. I want it and that's what counts. I told you you're under my control now and if you don't want that katana in your gut, you'll shut your gob and pleasure me!"

She gasped when the Alternate Doctor shoved her into the room and she felt to the floor. She looked behind her as the Time Lord shut the door and locked it.

"I don't buy that you've switched sides, Rose," he said to her. "I'm letting you live in order to amuse myself and enjoy your sweeties face when he sees you working for me. Now, whether or not that happens without the aid of a chip is up to you because I have no qualms about putting one back in you. You saw Sabessa and how angry she is. She won't hesitate to rip you apart and I'm all that stands between the two of you. You are in my world now and you will obey me, even if I have to reduce you to a shivering, quivering child in order to do it. Now, get that bodysuit off and get on the bed and I mean NOW!"

He grabbed Rose's hair and yanked her up when she didn't move fast enough. Rose glared at him silently as she began to take off her bodysuit.

"Yup, I'm so enjoying this," the Alternate Doctor said, standing over with a gleeful look on his face.

After making it back to his TARDIS, the Doctor closed the door as soon as everyone was inside. Donna sat on the jump seat with Mara while the Doctor powered up his ship and prepared to send it into the vortex. Mara watched in fascination as he did his manic dance around the console.

"How do you know what to push?" she asked as he ran around it.

"Ah, had centuries of practice with this old girl, it's second nature to me now," the Doctor said as the rotor came to life.

The walked to his monitor once the TARDIS dematerialized and flew into the vortex.

"Right, old girl, find his TARDIS and see if you can track it," he said to his ship while he leaned over in front of the monitor.

Mara came up beside him and the Doctor smiled tenderly as she watched the monitor with him.

"Do you think your ship will find his?" she asked him.

"With any luck. If he's in the vortex, she'll spot him," the Doctor said.

He slapped his hands together when they heard a beep and Gallifreyan text came on the monitor.

"Got him! And she has a lock on his TARDIS. Now wherever he goes, we'll follow. Ha!"

"So when he lands, we'll be there too?" Mara asked him.

"Yup and his TARDIS won't be able to shake us. She's got an absolute lock on his position. Now…I need something that will help me to get inside his TARDIS or immobilize it so I can use the screwdriver to open the door. Stay here and I'll be back."

The Doctor ran out of the room. Mara watched him go before she looked back at Donna.

"What will happen when he finds Rose?" she asked Donna.

"World War Three, love. All hell will break loose, trust me," Donna said. "Especially if he's hurt her."

Mara lowered her head.

"I'm sorry I helped do this, it's all my fault."

Donna got up and put her arms around her.

"Everything's forgiven, okay? Please stop beating yourself up over this. The Doctor isn't angry and I'm not angry either. You're as much a victim as Rose is. The Doctor's right, there were surely other options besides slavery when your parents sold you. You've been abused but you've come to the right person. He'll set things right for both you and Rose."

Mara smiled and hugged her. Donna hugged her tight and kissed the top of her head.

"Now, quit feeling guilty, we need your brain for more important thoughts like how to get Rose away from that bastard," Donna said.

Mara nodded and Donna tousled her hair affectionately.

While they were doing that, the Doctor was in his lab searching for something to help him break into his double's TARDIS. He had to calm himself down after he became nearly blinded with rage and the searching was helping him to calm down and think. While he was rifling through a drawer, he had a sudden thought.

"If the TARDIS is no longer cloaked and shielded…maybe the mind link will work now," the Doctor said.

He stood still, closed his eyes and mentally asked the TARDIS to strengthen the link so he could communicate with her.

Rose lay in bed, cheeks damp with tears while the Alternate Doctor lay beside her, snoring loudly. After another round of rough sex where he slapped her around, he finally came inside her and rolled off of her before going to sleep. The TARDIS had made the bedroom door disappear so she was basically walled into the room with him. In a way she was grateful for that since she didn't want Sabessa coming into the room, seeing them and starting a fight with her. She sighed as she stared up at the ceiling, annoyed at the loud snoring. She wanted so much to strangle her captor but she knew that would only mean regeneration and more abuse from the new Doctor. She found a spot on the ceiling and stared at it when suddenly…

_Rose?_

Her eyes bulged when she heard the Doctor's voice in her head. She jerked her head to the side and looked at the Alternate Doctor but he was still asleep. Hope swelled in her breast as she realized what was happening.

_Doctor?_ She thought back.

_Rose! Thank heavens you're still alive!_

Rose smiled at that, tears coming to her eyes.

_Yeah, I'm roughed up a bit but other than that, I'm alright,_ she thought.

_What has he done?_ The Doctor thought angrily.

Rose described what had been going on as quickly as she could in case the Alternate Doctor woke up. She hoped while she was talking to him that the Alternate Doctor wasn't picking up the conversation in his sleep. When she finished, there was a short pause before the Doctor spoke again.

_Try to obey as much as you can, he finally thought. We're locked on to his TARDIS and following it through the vortex, so stay calm and don't do anything foolish. All three of us are coming for you._

_Three?_ Rose thought.

The Doctor explained about Mara and what she'd been through. Rose's jaw tightened when she heard how old Mara was and what the Alternate Doctor had done to her and it made her hate him even more.

_So, hang in there,_ the Doctor thought when he finished telling her about Mara. _I better go now before he wakes and hears us. Whatever happens though, no matter how long, no matter how far, we will find you._

_I love you, Doctor._

_And I love you, my Rose, from now until the end of time. _

__Fresh tears fell down Rose's cheeks at that and she longed for the safety of his arms and her body against his.

_Oh, _the Doctor thought just when Rose thought he'd gone. _If you can manage it at some point, rip off his meat and veg and ram it up his anus, okay? _

Rose fought to keep from laughing at that.

_I will if I get the chance,_ she thought back.

_Molto bene. Signing off now, just know we're behind you now so don't fret. I'll give that bastard payback and then some. Goodbye, my precious Rose._

_Goodbye, my beloved,_ she thought back. _Be careful._

_You too._

She waited but the Doctor didn't say anything more. She sighed wistfully and glared at the snoring Alternate Doctor for a moment before she looked at the ceiling and entertained herself with thoughts of ramming his meat and two veg up his anus.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

"Success!"

Donna and Mara looked over when the Doctor strolled into the room.

"What's successful?" Donna said.

"Made contact and spoke to Rose," the Doctor said, walking towards them while they sat on the jump seat.

"You got her back?" Mara said.

"No…not yet, but I have a telepathic connection with her and I spoke to her through our mind link," the Doctor said, tapping the side of his head.

"You can do that?" Mara said. "You're telepathic?"

"Well, I am with my companions because the TARDIS links our minds while they're with me. I can do the same thing with Donna, although at the moment her connection is a bit weak since it takes time for the TARDIS to strengthen the connection. I couldn't do it before because I think my double's TARDIS was shielded but in order to fly in the vortex, you have to take that shielding down and that's how I was able to reach her."

"How is she?" Donna said.

The Doctor sighed and leaned back on the console.

"He's been abused her and he had sex with her," he said angrily. "When I reached her, the bastard was right beside her in bed, fast asleep. That's why I was able to get through without him interfering. Other than that, she's alright."

"Can I be the first to rip off that git's manhood and shove it down his throat?" Donna said.

"Well, I suggested to Rose she do the same except they went up his anus," the Doctor said.

"I like it, much better idea," Donna said.

"So, now what do we do?" Mara said.

"Well, we wait till he lands which will probably be when he moves his oafish, piggish bum out of bed and gets back to the console. One question though, Mara, you said there's another person with him?"

"Yes, Sabessa," Mara said.

"And is she a child as well?"

"No, she's a grown woman."

"And how do you know her?" the Doctor said.

"We met awhile back because we had similar clients when we worked the bars in Inner Saturn," Mara said. "She's nice to me but she doesn't like very many people."

"So, she might be jealous of Rose then?" Donna said.

"Yeah, I'm betting she is and she's a big cat so she has teeth and claws."

"Brilliant," Donna said, rolling her eyes. "Not only do we have to battle your evil bastard self for Rose, we gotta fight Garfield as well."

"Do you think Sabessa is with him right now?" the Doctor asked Mara.

"She should be. Why?"

"Well, because his TARDIS should be giving off a warning signal that he's being followed which is a high pitched beeping that'll be coming from his monitor. If he's asleep, he won't notice it but if Sabessa is around and anywhere near his console room, she'll hear it. She might not know what it is, mind, but I'm sure eventually she's gonna go wake him up and ask him what the beeping is."

"Which means he'll know we're here," Donna said with a sigh.

"Yup. I figured he would find out eventually but I was hoping for enough time to prepare. I do have this," he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small black, rectangular box. "I can use it to override his TARDIS's security measures and open his door. I created it after the Master stole my TARDIS and I couldn't get into it to stop him. We have to get close enough to use it though so I'm hoping we don't have to fight off more of those robots."

"Not to mention booby traps once you get inside," Donna said.

"Well, this should take care of that but if he has a cat lady traveling with him. We'll have to deal with her along with him."

"Like I said, brilliant," Donna said with another eye roll.

She noticed the Doctor was lost in thought for a moment.

"Got an idea?" Donna asked.

"I have an idea that could work with Sabessa but not with my double. I have perception filters but they don't work on Time Lords. However, we might be able to use them to elude Sabessa if she's chasing us."

"Any help getting away from Cat Lady is fine with me," Donna said.

The Doctor excused himself and ran back to his lab to get some perception filters. Donna and Mara watched him go and then Donna looked at Mara.

"This Sabessa, how big is she?"

"Taller than me."

"So she's a big bloomin' cat?"

"Yeah, like a big panther."

"Panther? Oh blimey, I hope these perception filters work on her because I'm in no mood to face that," Donna said. "Any chance she might defect to our side the way you did?"

"Um…dunno if she will or not. I doubt it though."

"Again…brilliant," Donna said. "Lovely day this is turning out to be."

Meanwhile on the other TARDIS, Sabessa was annoyed beyond belief. For the past hour, the monitor on the console had been beeping and the Alternate Doctor hadn't been back to turn it off. The high pitched beep was grating on her nerves and she finally decided to go look for the Alternate Doctor so he would turn it off and give her ears and nerves some peace. She growled to herself as she tried to find him through the confusing array of corridors. Finally, she threw up her hands when she couldn't locate him.

"Alright, I know you're alive!" she yelled at the TARDIS, "Where is he?"

The TARDIS moved a room in front of her face and revealed the door to his bedroom. Sabessa began to pound on the door.

"Open up, Doctor, and fix your bleedin' monitor!" she screamed at she pounded. "Quit fucking your slave and tend to your ship!"


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

"Open up, damn it!"

Rose raised her head up when she heard Sabessa banging on the door. She looked at the Alternate Doctor and rolled her eyes when she noticed he was still snoring loudly.

"Not that I wanna wake you up, but I don't want Pissed Off Puss coming through that door either," Rose said before she began shaking the Alternate Doctor's shoulders. "Oi, wake up! You're needed!"

The Alternate Doctor's eyes snapped open. His head jerked up and he groaned when he heard Sabessa screaming at him to open the door.

"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, DAMN IT, I'M COMING! DON'T BASH DOWN THE FUCKING DOOR!" the Alternate Doctor said as he got out of bed.

He walked to the door completely naked and threw it open.

"Stop it!" he yelled at Sabessa.

He sighed when Sabessa glanced at his naked body and then looked at Rose in bed.

"Yeah, yeah, I had a go at Rose and that's why I'm in the altogether. What do you want?"

"Your monitor is beeping and it's driving me crazy," Sabessa growled at him.

"What'd ya mean, beeping?" the Alternate Doctor said.

"It's beeping, like this…"

She imitated the beeping sound for him and the Alternate Doctor's eyes widened. He turned to Rose.

"You! Up! Get dressed!" he said gruffly to her as he grabbed his clothes.

Rose sighed, shook her head and got out of bed, walking over to the other side of the room to get the bodysuit. Ignoring Sabessa's snickers, she sat back down on the side of the bed and eased the bodysuit up her body. When she was dressed, the Alternate Doctor told her to follow him as he walked out of the room. Rose tried to do the same but Sabessa blocked the doorway when she tried to go through. Rose sighed.

"Out of the way," Rose said to her.

"How's it feel, being his sex toy?" Sabessa sneered. "Do you enjoy the sex?"

"No. Now get out of my way," Rose said.

"No? Isn't he the same as your other Doctor? So does that mean you don't like shagging your other Doctor?"

"Um…he told me to follow him and you have seen him when he gets cross, yeah?" Rose said. "You want him to come back here and do something to you?"

She tried to get past but Sabessa put a hand on her shoulder. Rose narrowed her eyes.

"Let go of me," she growled at her.

Sabessa snorted at that.

"You think you're bulletproof because the Doctor fancies you?" Sabessa said.

Rose smirked.

"What's wrong, puss? Jealous because he's shagging me and not you? Maybe he doesn't like hairballs when he's snogging ya."

Rose ducked when she took a swing at her and Sabessa gasped when Rose planted her fist in Sabessa's abdomen.

"You might think I'm a pushover but I do know how to fight and I've been trained by the best, so don't fuck with me, kitty cat," Rose snarled at her. "Now let me pass before you get more of the same!"

Sabessa roared with rage and raised her clawed hand to bring it down on Rose's face. She gasped when the Alternate Doctor seized the arm and jerked it down behind her back.

"I believe she told you to move," the Alternate Doctor snarled at Sabessa. "And she was correct about doing something to you if you get me cross. Now, you'll behave and leave her alone or I'll toss you headfirst into the vortex and let you disintegrate into dust. Now move!"

He let go of her arm and Sabessa quickly moved away from the door. Rose glared at her as she came out of the room.

"This isn't over yet, Hairless, not by a longshot," Sabessa muttered when the two of them were out of earshot.

Meanwhile in the other TARDIS, Mara was standing beside Donna; chatting with her while she sat on the jump seat. While they were doing that, the Doctor, wearing the perception filter, quietly snuck into the console room. He casually walked up behind Mara but neither she nor Donna noticed his presence. He waited a moment, listening to Donna speaking to Mara before he suddenly seized her shoulder and yelled, "BOO!" Donna shrieked while Mara nearly jumped out of her skin and the Doctor bent over laughing when Donna gave him a murderous look.

"You nearly gave me a bleedin' heart attack, ya wanker!" Donna yelled at him while the Doctor sniggered.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," the Doctor said.

"How'd you do that?" Mara said. "You just appeared out of thin air."

The Doctor took off the perception filter and explained how it worked. Mara took the key from him and turned it over in her hands, staring at it silently while he continued his explanation.

"So this magic key will let us get by Sabessa?" Mara said when he finished.

"Hopefully, the trick is not drawing attention to yourself. That's why I was able to sneak up on you, because I was quiet and didn't let you know I was there. If I'd come into the room beating on a big bass drum, it wouldn't have worked."

"And it won't work at all on your other self," Donna said to him.

"No. So we have to be careful and try to find a way to get to Sabessa without him seeing us. If we can incapacitate her at the start we won't have to worry about her."

"What about Rose? Will it work on Rose too?"

"Yes. Which means we'll have to try to make ourselves known to her. But if tall and creepy is around, he'll probably just point us out anyway. It's not much but it's more than what we had before."

"What about laser guns?" Mara said.

"Don't use em. I don't believe in using guns. I use my intellect and whatever else is available."

"And that works?" Mara said.

"Oh, you'd be surprised how powerful your mind is when you put it to use. Brain over brawn is my motto…or one of them anyway. Let the weak and cowardly use guns, it takes real skill to outsmart someone."

"Then there's your evil self who is just as smart as you and suddenly you're wishing for a bazooka," Donna said.

"Nah, I can outsmart even him. I've done it before. Just stay calm and keep thinking and we'll sort this mess out in no time," he said, patting Mara on the shoulder.

The Alternate Doctor raced into the console room followed by Rose.

"What is that, is it a warning?" Rose said as both of them slowed down and walked to the monitor.

"Yes, a proximity warning," the Alternate Doctor said, looking at his monitor. "Fuck! Shoulda known!"

"What?" Rose said as the Alternate Doctor switched off the alarm.

"Your sweetums is tracking us through the vortex. He's locked on to my ship."

"He did, how?" Rose said, feigning ignorance.

"His TARDIS is similar to mine so he can latch on to it and keep track of where it's going. Which means, Dumbo Douchebag is going to land where we land. Which means we must be prepared for his arrival."

"What happened?" Sabessa said as she came through the door.

The Alternate Doctor repeated what he told her and Sabessa snorted.

"Didn't you know that would happen if he's you?" she said.

The Alternate Doctor narrowed his eyes at her.

"First off, you'll drop the snotty tone of voice when speaking to me and secondly, yes, I figured this would happen which is why I have you here to stop him, among other things. I'm sure he also has something that will allow him entry into my TARDIS as well but I have an idea, I'll turn off the defenses and leave the door wide open."

"What?" Sabessa said, "are you off your trolley? You're gonna let him come right in the door."

"I didn't say getting to the door would be easy, my dear. He'll have to fight his way in here," he replied. "I have several things for him and his friends to go up against and…"

He trailed off and suddenly looked at Rose. Rose backed up a couple of paces when she noticed him staring at her intently.

"What don't I like the look on your face?" she said.

"Maybe because I just thought of a fiendishly clever thing for you to do once the Doctor comes here," he said.

Rose stared at him for a moment before trying to run. She grunted when Sabessa grabbed her from behind and held her in a bone crushing hug.

"Ah, come on, Rose, you'll like what I have in mind," the Alternate Doctor said while Rose tried to wriggle out of Sabessa's grip. "You'll get to see your sweetie again and you'll finally be a useful member of this TARDIS."

He pinched a nerve in Rose's neck and Rose's head slumped over as she lost consciousness.

"Come, Sabessa, you can help me while I prepare Rose for our guest," he said to her before he led her out of the console room.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty One

(A half hour later…)

The Doctor looked over at his monitor when he heard an alert. He went over and checked it while Mara and Donna sat on the jump seat behind him. All three of them were wearing perception filters and were armed with a few devices for protection while they tried to rescue Rose.

"He's finally landed. Apparently, Sleepyhead woke up," the Doctor said. "The TARDIS is following him to his location."

"And where will that be?" Donna asked.

"Dunno yet, we'll have to wait till we land," the Doctor said. "But…this is it so we must be vigilant because I'm sure he'll have several things waiting for us."

He checked the monitor again and shook his head when he saw where the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS had landed.

"What's wrong?" Donna said.

"Shoulda known. He landed on Pumice, a volcano planet."

"Wait, what?" Donna said, not sure she heard him right.

"A volcano planet, Donna. The planet is filled with volcanoes and hot magma pockets and rivers of lava that snake all over the barren, rocky surface. This is the playground he's brought us to."

"And…you have asbestos suits for us, right?" Donna said hopefully.

She groaned when the Doctor shook his head.

"Being a temp was so much easier," she muttered to herself as the TARDIS landed and powered down.

The Doctor told his companions to wait while he checked their surroundings. He cautiously unlocked the door and opened it. Coughing, he quickly closed and locked it again.

"That's not a good sign," Donna said.

"The air is sulfurous and it's not suitable for breathing. We're gonna have to wear oxygen masks while we're out there," he said to them. "Don't have time to go back and get them. TARDIS, three oxygen masks for us, if you please."

There was a flash and three masks appeared on the console. The masks resembled the bottom half of a gas mask with a strap that fit around the head. The Doctor walked over to the console, picked one up and demonstrated how to wear it. The bottom half of his face was covered by the mask and he made a Darth Vader-like sound when he breathed.

"You look weird," Mara said.

The Doctor bent over to her face and breathed heavily for a moment.

"Are you my mummy?" he said in a muffled voice.

Mara giggled and told him no. The Doctor winked.

"Private joke. Rose would know what I'm on about," he said, leaning back up. "Anyway, strap on your masks, team TARDIS, we're going for a nice little walk in the sulfurous air."

The Doctor helped Mara and Donna strap on their masks. Once he was satisfied they were on securely and working properly, he led them to the front door. But on the way there he stopped when he had a sudden thought.

"What's wrong?" Donna said when he slapped his forehead.

"I'm so thick sometimes. I forgot we had another weapon of sorts," he said, turning around.

"And what would that be?" Donna said to him.

"Mara," the Doctor said, pointing to her.

"Me?" Mara said.

"Yes, you can shape shift. She can turn herself into other people."

"Ah, I see," Donna said. "She could pretend to be other people and create confusion."

"Precisely. Mara, can you shape shift into me?"

Mara's body morphed into the Doctor. The Doctor nodded.

"What about Donna?"

Her body morphed again.

"Impressive," Donna said when she looked at an exact likeness of herself.

"Yes, very much so. Although, you can't imitate voices?" the Doctor said to Mara. "Seems a bit strange that you don't have mimicry skills if you can shape shift."

"My people can imitate voices but they teach you that in high school and my parents took me out of school before I could learn."

"Ah, I see. Well, hopefully, you won't have to speak. We just need you to turn into other people and create confusion as Donna said. Can you do that for us?"

Mara nodded and he patted her shoulder before he turned back around and unlocked the door. They stepped outside and Donna was taken aback when she felt the intense heat on her skin. They were on a barren chunk of rock that hadn't seen life for eons. Nearby a river of lava snaked by, giving off most of the heat. The air was filled with sulfuric gas drifted by their faces. There was no sunlight so the only light was being given off by the lava.

"Not an ideal holiday spot," Donna quipped as the Doctor shut the door behind them.

"No. But it figures my evil self would choose something like this, just watch your footing and be aware at all times what's going on around you."

"You mean like the fact that that's about to go up?" Donna said, pointing to a smoking volcano a few miles away.

"Yes and hopefully that won't erupt while we're here. Now, we need to find the other TARDIS and…"

"YOOOOO-HOOOOO!"

"Or maybe we won't have to look," the Doctor said to Donna when they heard the Alternate Doctor calling to them.

"Oi, Captain Craphole, I'm over here!"

"Captain Craphole?" Donna said while Mara giggled and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Are you looking for meeeee?" the Alternate Doctor called in a high-pitched voice.

The Doctor beckoned to his companions and they walked around the TARDIS. About fifty feet from them, the other TARDIS was disguised as a huge rock. Half of the rock had swung open and they could see the Alternate Doctor standing in the doorway. He was wearing an oxygen mask, except his was made of clear plastic. He waved his arm back and forth while they watched them.

"Have you come to visit meeee?" he squealed at them. "How delightful. I love when neighbors come to call. Won't you come in? I'm sure Rose is waiting for you. Toodles."

Donna was shocked when he turned and went inside without shutting the door. They watched him walk over to his seat beside the console and sit down. He waved cheerfully to them and then crossed his arms over his chest while he relaxed.

"Let me guess, there are things waiting to stop us from going in the door," Donna said.

"Yup," the Doctor said, popping the p. "Like I said, be alert."

They walked towards the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS. Inside, the Alternate Doctor put his hands behind his head and leaned his chair back while he watched them approach.

"Now watch," Donna said to the Doctor as they walked. "He doesn't have anything at all to stop us until we get inside his TARDIS."

"No, I'm betting there's something around here lying in wait. He won't make it that easy…or that boring," the Doctor replied.

"Doctor!"

The Doctor and Donna turned around when Mara cried out and they saw three silver robots coming out from behind some large rocks.

"See, told ya so," the Doctor said.

"Do we fight them?" Mara asked.

The Doctor looked around and spied another large boulder to their left.

"No, follow me, I have an idea," the Doctor said.

The robots ran after them when the Doctor, Donna and Mara headed for the boulder.

"And they're off!" the Alternate Doctor called from inside his TARDIS.

The Doctor ran around the boulder and saw a boulder next to it. He made everyone run around that one and then had them freeze.

"Let's see if the perception filters work on them," he muttered to his friends as they pressed up against the boulder.

They waited, trying to keep their breathing as quiet as possible. A few minutes later, two of the robots came around the side of the boulder. Everyone stood perfectly still and to the Doctor's relief, the robots didn't notice them. He very carefully moved his head, looking around for something to fight the robots with. He noticed a rock the size of a basketball about ten feet away. His eyes darted back to the robots that had their backs to him while they searched. He noticed the outline of a panel on their backs and he glanced again at the rock. He indicated with his fingers for Mara and Donna to stay where they were and he slowly inched towards the rock, keeping his eyes on the robots while he did it. He froze when one of the robots turned around for a moment but the moment the robot turned his back, the Doctor resumed his slow but steady pace to the rock.

Then he froze again when the third robot came around the first boulder. He watched as it passed by him and walked off to his right. The Doctor looked around and noticed another large rock near Donna. He waved his hand, getting her attention and then pointed to it. Donna and Mara looked at it and looked back at him. He pointed to Donna and then to the rock. He pointed to a robot near her and mimed hitting it on the head. Donna nodded, made an OK sign with her fingers and slowly inched towards the rock. The Doctor shook his head when Mara started to go for another rock that was several feet in front of her but then to his delight she shape shifted into one of the robots. The Doctor smiled and nodded his approval and Mara crept towards the rock. The Doctor reached the rock, hefted it up and turned his sights on the robot that had gone to his right. He looked at Donna and Mara and decided to risk using their mind link to communicate with her.

Panel on their back, he thought to her. Hit it and then open the panel and disable it.

Donna looked at him and nodded her understanding. The Doctor tried the same with Mara, hoping the TARDIS had established a basic connection with him. He smiled when Mara's head jerked around in surprise the moment she heard his voice but she also nodded in understanding and reached down to pick up the rock. The Doctor then continued towards the robot that was searching over by another nearby boulder. The Doctor crept up behind him and was about to hit him when he heard a clang behind him. Both robot and Time Lord turned around and saw Donna had knocked the robot to the ground and was hitting him again to keep him down. The other robots started towards her but both the Doctor and Mara hit them over the head with their boulders. The Doctor's was heavy enough to bring the robot down but Mara's was lighter and she had to duck back when the robot staggered and tried to punch her. The Doctor lifted up his boulder, ran to the robot and threw it at the robot's head before it could do anything to stop him. There was a loud clang and the robot went down. The Doctor and Mara quickly turned him over and the Doctor used his screwdriver to open the panel and pulled out several of the wires. He then got up and sprinted towards the first robot that was just starting to get up. He fell on it, pinning it down just long enough to get the panel open and rip out the wires. He glanced Donna's way but she'd already disabled hers and he breathed a sigh of relief as he got up. Once they made sure the robots were dead they headed back around the boulders.

Once they got around the rocks, the Doctor saw a piece of paper pinned underneath a rock that was about twenty feet across from the open TARDIS door. The paper fluttered in the breeze as they walked over and the Doctor glanced into the TARDIS interior as he knelt down to retrieve it. The Alternate Doctor waved cheerfully to him as he rested in his chair and the Doctor shook his head as he turned his attention back to the piece of paper. He leaned back up and turned over the paper when he saw the side facing up was blank. On the other side of it was a crudely drawn map with MY TARDIS in a circle at the bottom of the paper. A pencil line snaked up from that towards the top of the paper past crudely drawn rocks and volcanoes and at the top in another circle was the word ROSE. The Doctor rolled his eyes at that and looked at his double.

"Thought you might like a scavenger hunt," he called to him. "Give you a chance to see the scenery. Have fun finding your sweetie-pie! And be sure to take plenty of water, don't wanna get heat stroke out there. I'll be in here in the air-conditioned TARDIS waiting. Have fun!"

The Doctor glanced down at the map, trying to figure out where he was supposed to go since he could tell the map was drawn in about sixty seconds.

"Over there, Dingle Dork!" the Alternate Doctor called pointing to the right of the TARDIS. "You start there! Oh, and be sure to bring Mara and your ginger dog back in one piece, I might have a go at them."

"I'm gonna have a go at you when I ram my fist through your face," Donna muttered to herself as she and Mara followed the Doctor while he began his search.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty Two

"Ugh!" the Doctor said as they walked along the barren rocky surface. "This map is atrocious. How does he expect me to navigate with it? A blind infant with a melted crayon could draw a better map than this."

"Maybe it's a wild goose chase and he's leading you away from Rose," Donna said. "Rose might still be in the TARDIS and he's making you come all the way out here so he can leave."

"Yes, that's a possibility. But…like I said before, he wants me dead. He knows if he leaves I'll just follow him to the next place since my TARDIS is locked on to his so it would be better for him to stand and face me here. As for Rose still being in his TARDIS, wouldn't put it past him."

He stopped and examined the map, shaking his head when he couldn't decide if he was following it correctly. There were several large boulders around them and only few crudely drawn blobs beside the line on the match that he assumed represented the rocks. He sighed and tried his mind link with Rose but she didn't respond and he walked on, hoping he was going the right way. He noticed the line on the map turned to the left after a large boulder and he noticed his double had drawn a squiggly line that intersected the line once he turned. He came to a very large boulder and looked to his left. To his left there was a river of lava about twenty feet from them and he looked at the map deducing that the intersecting line must be the lava. He beckoned to his friends and turned left. They walked up to the lava and stopped. The gap in the rock was about two feet wide and orange colored lava slowly flowed through it.

"We have to go across it?" Donna asked.

"Seems so," the Doctor replied. "I'll go first and help you and Mara cross it."

He folded up the map and put it in his inside jacket pocket before he took a few tentative steps up to the gap. He blinked when the heat from the lava began to dry out his eyes. He gauged the distance and then took a huge step over the lava, quickly pulling his other leg over the moment his foot hit the other side. He turned and beckoned to his friends.

"Ugh," Donna said as she walked up to it.

The Doctor held out his hands. Donna took them and he helped her across. Then he beckoned to Mara. Mara walked up to the lava and looked down at it. She shied away from it in fear.

"Don't worry, I'll help you across. Trust me," the Doctor said, holding his hands out to her.

Mara took his hands and the Doctor came up to the very edge and gave her encouragement. Mara took a huge step and gasped when she nearly slipped but the Doctor pulled her across and held her in his arms as she gasped in shock.

"See, you could do it," the Doctor said, patting her back. "Easy peasy lemon squeasy."

"Yeah, but I don't wanna do that again," Mara said as they turned and walked away.

The Doctor took the map out of pocket and examined it again. Then he suddenly got a sense that something wasn't right and he stopped everyone. On either side of them, jagged rocks rose up about fifty feet in the air with a few shorter rocks spaced out in between and they were hemmed in to a narrow corridor that stretched on for about thirty feet.

"What's wrong?" Donna said, her eyes scanning her surroundings.

"I think we're not alone. Be alert," the Doctor said before they resumed walking.

They walked three feet before they heard laughter on the rocks above them. They looked up and saw Sabessa crouched between two of the jagged rocks that were only about ten feet in height. She had on a black bodysuit and was wearing a black oxygen mask over her snout.

"See, told ya," the Doctor said smugly to Donna. "Keen senses, me."

Donna rolled her eyes and all of them backed up when Sabessa leapt up into the air and landed lightly on her feet ten feet in front of them.

"On the hunt for something?" she said. "So am I? I'm on the hunt for hairless apes."

She narrowed her eyes when she looked at Mara.

"And one blue betrayer," she growled at her.

"The other Doctor is evil," Mara said.

"Not as evil as this one is," Sabessa said, pointing to the Doctor.

"No, they got it wrong; he's nothing like the legends. He's not the Widow Maker. The other Doctor's more like the Widow Maker and I want nothing to do with him."

"Too bad, guess you'll die along with them then," Sabessa said with a shrug.

"Where's Rose?" Donna said.

"Dead, hopefully," Sabessa said with a shrug. "Hopefully, the brainless ape woke up and fell into the lava."

"If she did, you're going into the lava after her," Donna snarled at her.

"You first, bitch," Sabessa said.

"Ooo, even I'm not brave enough to say that to her face," the Doctor said. "Gotta give you points for that. That doesn't mean I'm not going to send you packing, however."

He tensed his muscles when Sabessa hissed at him and unsheathed her claws. Then she sprang at him and the Doctor caught her arms and fell back with her to the ground. Mara ran up and kicked Sabessa hard in the side while the Doctor struggled to get her off of him. Sabessa hissed when she kicked her again and Donna started in from the other side. Then Donna slammed her fist down on the back of Sabessa's head which enraged her enough that she got up and started after Donna.

"Oh no, you don't," the Doctor said, running after her.

Mara looked around, trying to find a way to stop Sabessa from hurting her friends. She noticed Sabessa was herding Donna towards the lava while at the same time trying to fight off the Doctor who was ducking and weaving and hitting her body at random spots while he taunted her to fight him back. She got an idea and ran up to the Doctor. The Doctor looked at her, giving her a look of warning but the moment Sabessa turned her attention back to Donna, Mara shapeshifted into the Doctor and ran around her. Sabessa growled when she saw Mara sticking her tongue out and making silly faces at her. While she was doing that, the Doctor noticed a chunk of rock nearby. Relying on his perception filter, he quietly went over and picked it up. Noticing that Mara had almost driven Donna and Mara to the lava, the Doctor hurried back over, raised the rock over his head and brought it down hard on the back of Sabessa's head. She grunted and slumped to the ground, unconscious. The Doctor checked her and gave a satisfied nod.

"Hopefully, she'll be knocked out for awhile," he said.

"The perception filters didn't work on her though," Mara said as she and Donna came up to him.

"No, they worked. That's how I was able to sneak over and get the rock. The reason she could see us was we were talking to each other and she was able to home in on us. So from now on, we need to be silent and talk only when absolutely necessary. Shall we proceed?"

The Doctor kept the rock with him and the three of them walked on. Mara looked back at Sabessa who was still lying by the gap and she sighed, wishing her friend would wake up and see sense about the Alternate Doctor. They came through the corridor and the Doctor checked his map, noticing they didn't have far to go. He snorted and showed his friends the map.

"Wonder if this was drawn to scale," he quipped before they resumed walking.

He noticed they were supposed to turn right at another large rock. He looked up ahead and noticed a large rock. They headed towards it and when they reached it, he looked around it and smiled. About fifty feet from them, Rose was lying unconscious on a small rocky island that was surrounded on all sides by a natural lava moat. In the middle of the moat was a large jagged rock that hid the back of the island from view. As they walked towards it, Donna and Mara kept an eye out for anything that might attack them but they reached the moat with no interference. However, the Doctor couldn't see any way across the lava and he cursed under his breath.

"How'd he get her over there?" Donna said.

"Might have transmatted her over there," the Doctor said. "He could have had his TARDIS scan the terrain and find this spot then transmat her here and construct a crude map after asking the TARDIS to show him a bird's eye view of the topography. He might not have left his TARDIS at all which would explain how he managed to get her here so fast. Blast, this may mean we have to go back to his TARDIS and confront him to get at the transmat. Although…can't hurt to walk around the lava and see if there's a way over there. Stay here and keep your eyes open."

He handed the rock to Donna and walked to the right, going around the edge of the moat while Donna and Mara scanned the area. He reached the back and stopped when he saw several small flat rocks that were arranged in the middle of the lava like stepping stones. He gave them a once over and determined that they were spaced enough that he could make it from his side to the island by crossing him.

"Hang on, my love, I'm coming," he murmured to himself before he took a tentative step onto the first rock.

The rock was large enough to accommodate his trainers and he tested it making sure it would hold. Satisfied it would bear his weight, he stepped onto it. He gauged the distance to the next one with was about a half foot away and carefully stepped onto it. The third one was a little far and he nearly lost his balance getting to it. He breathed a sigh of relief when both feet were on the rock and looked to the next one. The next one was only a few inches away and he stepped onto it easily. Then it was only a half foot to the surface of the island and he gave himself a mental pat on the back when he stepped onto the rocky island. Then putting his hands behind his back, he strolled around the rock and waved cheerfully at the two women who were watching him from across the lava.

"Series of rocks behind here like skipping stones," he said, hooking his thumb back behind him.

He knelt down to Rose who was still unconscious. She was on her right side with her hair draped over most of her face. She was wearing a black bodysuit that covered her from head to toe. The Doctor noticed that there seemed to tubes snaking throughout the body suit, running down her arms, legs, back and front. He gently pushed her hair back out of her face and gritted his teeth when he saw a huge black and purple fist size bruise on her left cheek. He frowned when he noticed that there was a huge metal collar around her neck that seemed to be attached to the body suit. He noticed the most of the tubing ran up to it and he took out his sonic screwdriver and scanned it. He didn't get any readings for it and stared at it in confusion.

"What the hell is this, Rose? Some sort of bomb. Will you blow up if I move you?" he muttered as he laid his hand on her hair. Doesn't give off any radiation so it's not nuclear and no electricity. What's he done to you?"

He took his mask off, pushed her hair back even more and checked behind her ear and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw no surgery had been performed, at least not on the left side of her head. He gently kissed the side of her ear.

"Rose?" he spoke into her ear. "Rose, it's me, wake up. It's the Doctor."

She didn't respond and the Doctor let out a frustrated sigh.

"Luckily, I brought smelling salts," he said, reaching into his trouser pocket.

"Doctor!"

The Doctor jerked his head around when he heard Donna cry out and he saw a large silver orb hovering in the air above him. The Doctor held his screwdriver up towards it and turned it on but the orb dipped down beside him while his friends watched worriedly from the other side of the moat. Then the Doctor saw a small door slide down in the front of the metal orb and to his astonishment a camera lens slid out. He narrowed his eyes when the orb hovered in mid-air while he stared at his reflection in the glass lens.

"Let me guess," the Doctor said, "this is a camera and on the other side of the camera, an arrogant , sadistic git is watching me."

"Very good, Doctor."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow when he heard his voice coming out of a hidden speaker somewhere on the orb. He looked at Donna and Mara.

"It's a camera," he said to them.

The orb turned their way.

"Hello kiddies, smile for the camera!" the Alternate Doctor said through the speaker.

Donna gave him a dirty look and flipped off the camera.

"Ooo, bad form, ginger," the Alternate Doctor said. "I'll have to spank you hard for that whenever I catch you."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. He bent back over Rose with the smelling salts and gasped when the orb flew over and the lens ended up pressed against his cheek.

"Whatcha doin'?" the Alternate Doctor said in a kid's voice. "Let me seeee!"

"Piss off!" the Doctor said.

He sighed when the orb flew back and watched him from a safe distance. The Doctor gave the camera a look of death.

"This better not be a bomb on her body," he said to the camera.

"Bomb? Come now, that's not my style, Doctor."

"Then what is it?"

"Guess. That's part of the fun, right?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and ignored the orb while the Alternate Doctor giggled through the speaker. The Doctor opened the smelling suits, eyeing the camera when it inched forward a bit and down so his double could see what he was doing.

"Doctor, do you need us to come over there and smash the camera for ya?" Donna yelled.

"No, that won't be necessary. Just ignore him," the Doctor said.

Donna glared at the camera when it flew back over to her and stopped inches from her face.

"I'm sorry, were you threatening to break valuable, expensive equipment over here?" the Alternate Doctor asked her.

"Clear off before I carry out my threat," Donna said.

Her eyes bulged when the camera started to circle around her body.

"Ooo, you have a nice body, ginger," the Alternate Doctor said.

The camera was circling around her when it stopped and its lens pointed at Mara's face.

"Traitors will suffer tremendously. Just thought you should know that so you can be warned about the amount of pain you'll suffer when you're in my hands again."

Mara was about to respond when the orb went back to flying around Donna. Donna's mouth dropped open when the orb stopped beside her breasts and hovered there.

"Ooo, very, very nice," the Alternate Doctor purred.

"Piss off!" Donna said.

She tried to hit the camera but it flew out of her reach and looked down at her.

"They say gingers have tempers, I see that's true and…"

"Rose, are you alright?"

The alternate Doctor let out a gasp.

"ROSE IS AWAKE? LET ME SEEEE!"

Before anyone could stop the orb, it zoomed across the moat and slammed into the Doctor's back. The Doctor cried out in pain and anger as the orb zoomed around to the front of his body and looked down at Rose who was trying to fight the grogginess as she came to. Rose's eyes widened in shock when she saw the orb.

"Hello, sweetie, it's me, the better and more sexier Doctor. Have a nice slumber, did we?"

The orb flew up out of reach when the Doctor tried to hit it.

"I keep telling everyone this is expensive equipment, please stop trying to trash it!" the Alternate Doctor said as it hovered above the Doctor's head.

The Doctor ignored her as he helped Rose sit up. Rose looked around and did a double take.

"Where the hell are we?" she said.

"Pumice, a volcano planet, you're on a little island in the middle of some lava and…"

He glared at the orb when it slowly moved in closer.

"Keep going, I'm just listening," the Alternate Doctor said.

"What is this?" the Doctor said, pointing to the collar.

"I told you to guess," the Alternate Doctor said.

The Doctor pulled back her hair so the camera could see the bruise.

"And this?" the Doctor said.

"That? That was because she was being naughty and resisting so I had to calm her down, that's all."

"You're gonna pay for that and everything else you did to her," the Doctor growled at the camera.

"What?"

The Alternate Doctor made static noises.

"I'm sorry, I didn't get that last thing you said, the volcanic activity must be interfering with my transmission. Sounded like you said you like to suck the dew off goat's bollocks while Rose waxed your back? I could be mistaken though."

"Anyway," the Doctor said, turning his attention back to Rose. "Can you stand up?"

"I think so," Rose said.

"Can Rose stand up?" the Alternate Doctor said dramatically. "Let's watch and see!"

"I'm gonna kill him," Rose said as the Doctor put his arm around her and gave her support.

"Me first," the Doctor growled as he grabbed his mask and helped her to stand with his free arm.

When she was standing, he checked behind her right ear.

"Ooo, what's this?" the orb said, coming in closer. "Are you checking for dandruff or lice?"

"I'm checking for incisions for a chip," the Doctor growled at the camera.

"Oh that? Nah, didn't do that this time. I have something better. Care to guess what it is?"

Ignore him, Rose, come with me," the Doctor said as he walked her around the boulder.

The orb followed behind them and the Doctor looked back and sighed angrily. When they reached the stones, the Doctor stopped her.

"I came across this way. It's tricky but we'll make it across together. Okay?"

"Hey, those are back here?" the orb said, coming up beside them. "I transmatted her on this hunk of rock and lo and behold, here are stepping stones right to it. I was waiting for you to crawl back to me and beg me to give her to you. Damn, should plan more carefully next time."

The Doctor glared silently at the orb while he held Rose close to him.

"Well, gonna go across?" the Alternate Doctor finally asked.

"No, because I have a feeling the moment we step out onto the rocks, you'll ram us in the back and make us fall in the lava."

"And ruin the surprise I have in store for you? Not a chance. But if you're that nervous about me being here, I'll go look at Ginger's milk jugs some more. See ya on the other side."

The orb zoomed away and Rose rolled her eyes.

"Kill him, please," Rose said. "I know you have a no kill if you can help it policy but…kill him?"

"Piss off!" they heard Donna scream.

"Believe me, I'm considering it," the Doctor said softly. "Are you alright?"

"My cheek hurts but other than that. What is this though? These wires or tubes in my bodysuit, they weren't there before."

"Before, he's been making you wear this?"

"Yeah, you know how kinky he is," Rose said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, I don't know, it is kinda alluring if you take the tubes out."

"Well, I don't mind you being randy, it's him that's the problem," she said while he snickered.

The Doctor gave her a kiss on the cheek and rested his nose against it for a moment while Rose closed her eyes and said a silent thanks that she was with her Doctor again.

"Ready to cross?" the Doctor said.

Rose opened her eyes and groaned as she examined the rocks in front of her.

"No, but I don't wanna stay here either. Ready when you are."

"I won't let you fall. Not when I've made it this far," the Doctor said.

"I know you won't, I trust you completely," Rose said, gazing into his eyes.

"Aaah, that's so sweet!"

The Doctor sighed when he realized the orb was behind them again.

"Oops, sorry, not supposed to be here, I forgot. I'll go look at Milky's udders again while you cross the rocks in a dramatic fashion. Ready or not, Bossie, I'm coming back to look at your tee-tas!"

The orb flew away and the Doctor shook his head.

"Let's get across before Donna flies into a rage and he ends up knocking her into the lava," he said to her before he instructed her on how he wanted her to move with him.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty Three

"And there we go, safe and sound," the Doctor said as they stepped out onto the rocky ground.

They had just finished slowly crossing the lava, moving in unison while the Doctor kept his arm around Rose and supported her. For the most part, they had no trouble except when they got to the rock with the widest gap in it. Rose lost her balance for a moment when she tried to cross but the Doctor urged her to move her other foot and steadied her when they reached the rock. Now they were safely across.

"Never wanna do that again," Rose said.

"Well, actually there is another gap filled with lava on the way back but we can manage that."

Rose made a face and began to cough when the air finally got to her. The Doctor looked down at the mask in his hand and walked behind her.

"Here," he said, slipping it on her. "This will protect you from the air."

"What about you?" she said when he finished and came around to her front.

"I'm using my respiratory bypass system, I'll be alright," he said.

"Doctor, get over here and do something about this camera!"

The Doctor sighed.

"Always on duty, that's me," he said while Rose giggled.

"Doctor, you do know this is a trap, yeah?" Rose said, sobering up. "He said before I was knocked out that I was going to do something to earn my keep in the TARDIS. And now I'm wearing something with a metal collar and tubes running through it."

"Yeah, I don't fancy seeing this so-called surprise but I s'pose he'll spring the surprise whether or not we're ready so we might as well go around the lava and face the music."

"I love you, Doctor," Rose said softly.

"I do too and I'm sorry I let you get kidnapped again."

"No, it's not your fault. Please don't beat yourself up for this. We should have been more careful," Rose said as the Doctor took her hand.

"Well, we don't have to worry about Mara, she's on our side now," the Doctor said as they walked around to the front.

When they got around to the front, they saw Donna batting at the orb while it flew around and taunted her.

"Can't catch me, n'yah, n'yah!" the Alternate Doctor said gleefully as he flew around her body.

The orb stopped when he saw the Doctor and Rose and flew over to the Doctor's face.

"Ah, you made it over safely," the Alternate Doctor said as the orb hovered in front of them. "Doubtless you are wondering what Rose's suit is. Well, wait just a tic, and all will be revealed.

The Doctor waited but the Alternate Doctor didn't say anything more. Rose looked over when Mara came up beside her.

"Um…I'm sorry I had a hand in kidnapping you. I thought the Doctor was evil. I don't think that now. I'm sorry you got mixed up with this maniac," she said, pointing to the camera.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time he's taken me and it's alright, what matters is you came to your senses, I forgive ya," Rose said, patting her on the shoulder.

"Well, are you going to show us this surprise or not?" the Doctor finally said to the camera.

The Alternate Doctor didn't reply and the camera didn't move. The Doctor poked it.

"Maybe it explodes?" Donna said, pointing to the camera.

"No, he said it wasn't his style, remember, when I asked that about Rose's outfit."

"Maybe he's getting ready?" Mara offered.

"More than likely or he stepped out to go to the loo," the Doctor said.

"Okay, I'm back, just getting in the simulator," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Simulator?" Donna said. "For what?"

Suddenly there was a burst of electricity all over Rose's body from her neck on down. The Doctor cried out in shock and terror, thinking he was electrocuting her but Rose didn't die, just stood there while the suit rippled electricity all over it. The Doctor was perplexed. He extended his finger towards the electricity and then jerked it back when he got a shock. He looked at Rose to see if she was in pain but she was staring down at her body, just as confused as he was.

"You're not in pain?" the Doctor said.

Rose shook her head. Suddenly, without warning, she suddenly made a fist, drew her right arm back and decked the Doctor. The Doctor grunted while Rose let out a surprised yell.

"Doctor, that wasn't me, I didn't do it!" Rose said as the Doctor staggered back and put his hand against his cheek while he gave her a shocked look. "I didn't do that on my own, I swear. I…"

The Doctor grunted when Rose suddenly lunged forward and slammed her fist into his gut.

"What are you doing?" Donna said, coming up beside her.

"I'm not doing it," Rose said. "I can't move my body except for my head."

"That's me, actually," the Alternate Doctor said. "I took control of your body from the neck on down so I could use you as the aforementioned assassin. You see, you're going to kill the Doctor and his friends while I watch from the comfort of my TARDIS."

"Let her go!" the Doctor said to the camera.

"No. She told me you trained her; let's see how you match up against her, especially with me controlling her body. Now, my little doggie, fetch!"

Rose gasped as her body turned without her head, making her neck jerk. The Doctor watched helplessly as Rose was walked over to a nearby rock while she looked back at her lover and her friends.

"Doctor, get away from here now, all of you!" Rose said as she went behind the rock.

There was a pause and then Rose began to frantically scream for them to run. She came around the rock holding the Alternate Doctor's samurai sword in her hands. The Doctor told Donna and Mara to get back while Rose came towards him. He glared at the camera as it followed behind Rose.

"Doctor, please, run!" Rose begged. "I don't wanna hurt you."

"Don't worry, Rose, I'll get you out of this," the Doctor said.

He began to move from side to side while Rose came towards him. He dodged the sword when Rose swung it at him.

"Ooo, nice move," the Alternate Doctor said as he stayed behind Rose and followed the action.

The Doctor gave Rose a loving smile when he saw the fear and worry in her eyes. He jumped back out of the way and darted left and right when Rose repeatedly swung the sword at him. Then her leg shot out and caught the Doctor in the cheek with a karate kick before she swung the sword. Rose cried out when he wasn't fast enough and it cut his left arm. The Doctor glanced down at the flesh wound and moved back, trying to strategize while he thought of a way to stop Rose without hurting her. Rose urged him to run away while she followed him.

"I won't leave you like this, Rose," the Doctor said after she kept on urging him to run.

He darted to the side when Rose swung the sword again and finally was able to get at his screwdriver. He aimed it at the collar and turned it on and cursed when nothing happened.

"It's deadlock sealed, Doofus. Don't you think I would have thought of you using your screwdriver? Honestly, for a Time Lord, you have the intelligence of a human sometimes. So…you're gonna have to stop her somehow and I'm thinking you're gonna have to hurt her to do it before you end up as sushi."

Rose cried out when her body began to swing furiously at the Doctor. The Doctor shook his head, knowing he had no choice but to hurt her in order to disarm her.

"Forgive me, my hearts," he said to her before he kicked her wrist as hard as he could.

Rose cried out in pain but the body managed to hang onto the sword. However, it was long enough for the Doctor to run up past the sword and grab her wrists. He squeezed on the wrists, ignoring the shock he was getting while he tried to get her to drop the sword. He apologized to Rose as she cried out in pain but Rose still held onto the sword and he stopped before he broke her wrists. Before Rose's body could react, he ran around the back, grabbed her arms and tried to immobilize them. Rose yelled out when her body began to jerk around violently, trying to get out of his grasp and it was all the Doctor could do to hold on. He gritted his teeth as he heard the Alternate Doctor laughing behind him.

"I control her body, Doctor, which means you have to immobilize me to stop her!" he crowed.

"Doctor, please run, you can't stop me," Rose pleaded.

The Doctor looked at Mara when she ran up beside Rose.

"No!" he said when he noticed she was about to throw a punch. "He controls her body, if you knock her out, the body will still keep going. Just get back."

"Correct, Doctor," the Alternate Doctor said. "So really you have only two choices…run away or kill her. Wait, make that three choices since you and your friends can also surrender yourselves to me and I'll stop her attack. Otherwise, your best choice is to run and I'll make Rose hunt you down…and when I say hunt you down, I mean I'll make her body run without ceasing until she drops dead of exhaustion and then I'll make her corpse keep on running. So…it's your choice, Doctor."

The Doctor sighed, knowing he had no choice but to surrender. He told Rose that and she shook her head.

"Run, please, Doctor. Don't worry about me. You and Mara and Donna save yourselves, please."

"I can't do that. I won't let you suffer."

Tears flowed down Rose's cheeks.

"He'll torture you," she whimpered.

"I know but it would be worse torture for me to have to kill you or see you drop dead of exhaustion," he murmured in her ear. "It's not the end, my hearts, I'll think of a way to get us out of this, just trust me and let me surrender before he hurts you or one of us."

Rose nodded. She swallowed hard when the Doctor whispered his love in her ear and kissed her earlobe. She sobbed quietly when the Doctor turned his head around to the camera.

"We surrender," he said.

"Let go of her and step back," the Alternate Doctor commanded.

The Doctor looked at Rose who was now sobbing uncontrollably.

"Shh, don't cry, it'll be alright," he said soothingly.

"He'll torture you again, just like he did on the Valiant," Rose said softly between her sobs. "After everything they did to you there, now you have to surrender to him again."

"I'll be alright," the Doctor whispered. "It won't be like before. Just trust me."

He kissed her temple and let go of her arms before stepping back. Suddenly, without warning, Rose's body swung around and struck the Doctor in the face with the butt of the sword. Rose cried out when he fell to the ground in a daze. Rose stood over him, tears running down her face as her body pointed the tip of the sword at his jugular.

"Stand up and do as I say," the Alternate Doctor said, "and if you try anything, she'll run you all through with my katana. You lot, fall in with him. Rose is going to guard you all the way back to my TARDIS and once you're there, that's when the fun really begins."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty Four

Rose felt sick to her stomach as she walked behind her lover and her friends. The Alternate Doctor was still controlling her body and she had the sword up and ready to strike while they walked back to the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS. She looked at the Doctor who was calmly walking a few feet in front of her and the sick feeling intensified when she thought of all the torture his double would probably put him through. She hated herself for not trying to escape faster and instead playing along with her demented captor. The Doctor was going to suffer along with her friends and it would be her fault. She wished the Doctor would kill her so they could escape, even though she knew he'd let himself die before that happened. Since she couldn't move anything but her head all she could do at the moment was hope for the best and hope they would find some way of escaping.

While they walked, the orb glided along a few feet behind Rose's head, the camera lens aimed directly at his captives.

"You know, I'm so brilliant sometimes, it almost astounds me," the Alternate Doctor said to his prisoners. "I bet you never would have guessed in a million years that I'd turn your pumpkin poo into a puppet, eh, Doctor?"

"If I were you, I'd let all of them go and deal with me alone," the Doctor said, looking over his shoulder at the camera.

"But where would be the drama then? After all, it intensifies your misery if I'm doing something to the people you love, right? It's boring torturing a willing victim. And one thing I hate is being bored."

"What are you going to do to them?" Rose said, looking over her shoulder.

"The question is, my concubine, what won't I do to them?" he replied to her. "After all, I have almost limitless possibilities. But actually, I do have something in mind for your snookums there. But you'll just have to wait to find out what it is. In the meantime, march, soldier! Quit dragging your feet…or should I say, my feet? What do I pay you for? I certainly don't pay you to slack off! Oh wait, I'm in control of your feet so I'm the one slacking off. Sorry, my bad."

Rose felt herself speeding up until she was directly behind the Doctor. She lowered the sword slightly and then to her horror, her hand suddenly smacked the back of the Doctor's head.

"I'm sorry," Rose said as the Doctor sighed angrily and rubbed the back of his head.

"Don't apologize, Rose," the Doctor said, looking back at her. "You're not doing it."

He grunted when Rose's hand slapped his head again.

"Leave him alone!" Rose said to the camera.

She repeated her command when her hand raised the sword and began poking him in the ass with it.

"Get along, little doggie!" the Alternate Doctor crowed as Rose's body continue to poke the Doctor in the ass with the sword. "Oh, what I wouldn't give for a cattle prod right now. It would be so hilarious seeing the Doctor yelping and jumping along as he gets shocked in the bum repeatedly. That's one of the things I'll have to have Rose do when you lot get back here. It'll amuse me to see you get the shit shocked outta ya by your true love."

To Rose's relief, the sword lowered but then her hand slapped the Doctor's head again.

"Come on, Oncoming Storm, get angry and stop your tormentor!" the Alternate Doctor said before Rose's body slapped his head again. "Do something to stop her! I dare ya!"

Mara started to turn back towards the camera but the Doctor grabbed her arm.

"No, don't do anything," he said to her.

He grunted when Rose's body slapped his head again.

"Stop it!" Rose yelled at the camera. "Leave him alone!"

"And stop the fun? Hey! Maybe we can go around the front and carve that pretty face of his up like a pumpkin!"

To her horror, Rose suddenly ran around them while the camera followed.

"No, don't make me do this," Rose said when the Doctor stopped and faced her without any fear.

Mara and Donna stopped and watched helplessly from either side. The Doctor folded his arms over his chest and waited. Then Rose's hand lifted her mask, jammed her finger into her mouth so she got it wet and put it in the Doctor's left ear.

"Wet willy!" the Alternate Doctor crowed before laughing hysterically.

"Yeah, that was really hilarious," the Doctor said, rolling his eyes. "I believe I told you once you should really act your age and you still haven't learned how to do that."

The Doctor's eyes widened when Rose's arms grabbed the Doctor and her body began to hump his leg for a few seconds. By now, Donna and Mara were exasperated.

"The Doctor's right, can you be any more immature?" Donna said to the camera when Rose stopped and stood up.

The orb flew over to Donna and hovered in front of her face while Donna gave him a challenging look. Then slowly, the orb dropped down to her breasts.

"Quit that!" Donna said as the Alternate Doctor giggled.

Suddenly, Rose's body walked over to a nearby rock and they watched in horror as her fist drew back and froze, poised to hit the rock as hard as possible.

"Let's break every knuckle in Blondie's hand, shall we?" the Alternate Doctor said as the camera flew around to the Doctor's face.

"Stop it! Leave her alone!" the Doctor growled.

"Funny, she was asking me to leave you alone and you're asking me to leave her alone. Ahh, young lovers who would sacrifice everything for each other. How sweet."

Rose breathed a sigh of relief when she came away from the rock without hitting it. Instead, she walked over to the Doctor, laid the sword on the ground and began to run her fingers through his hair.

"Oh, Doctor," the Alternate Doctor said as he imitated Rose's voice. "I love the feel of your hair as I run it through my fingers. Make sweet love to me!"

Rose gasped when she suddenly punched the Doctor hard in the face.

"What? You won't make love to me! How dare you! I want a divorce!" the Alternate Doctor screeched as the Doctor held his nose and glared at the camera. The orb flew between them.

"By the way, you're not married, are you?" the Alternate Doctor said to his double. "Intriguing. Especially since you claim to love the woman behind me so very much. Why not make her your wife then?"

The Doctor didn't say anything to that.

"What's wrong, Bashful Bachelor?" the Alternate Doctor said to him. "Man enough to be her boyfriend but not brave enough to take the plunge? Are you one of those why buy the cow when you can have the milk for free blokes?"

"Can we just get on with this?" Donna finally said. "I'm sick of standing here listening to you run your gob."

"Then again, after meeting women like ginger over there, I can understand why some men stay single," the Alternate Doctor said while he used Rose to point to Donna. "But the Mouth and Jugs is right, sally forth and tally ho and all that. Rose! Time to play follow the leader."

Rose picked up the sword, turned and began to walk off.

"Follow the leader everyone!" the Alternate Doctor said as the orb flew off. "I'm not stopping you from running away but then again, you wouldn't, would you? Not while Rose is in my thrall. So…Come along, you lot! We're nearly there now!"

The Doctor glanced at Mara and Donna and they began to follow behind Rose. While they did that, they could hear the Alternate Doctor singing loudly as the orb followed behind Rose.

"Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's home to TARDIS we go. The Doctor's chicken shit, he won't commit to the ho, hi-ho hi-ho hi-ho, hi-ho, It's home to TARDIS we go. The Doctor's afraid he won't get laid to the ho if he marries, marries her, whoa-ho-ho-ho. Everybody! Sing with me! Hi-ho, hi-ho…"

The Alternate Doctor stopped singing when Sabessa suddenly appeared on top of one of the boulders. She jumped down in front of Rose and smirked as she walked towards her.

"You and I have unfinished business, ape," Sabessa said as she unsheathed her claws.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter Twenty Five

Rose's heart began to race when she realized that she was completely helpless unless the Alternate Doctor moved her body. And she figured that he would just let her stand there and get her face scratched to ribbons for a laughed. But, she breathed a sigh of relief when the Doctor came up beside her and gave Sabessa a challenging look.

"Didn't learn your lesson the last time?" the Doctor said. "Don't think for one minute that you'll be able to get to Rose without getting through me first."

"Ah, there we go again, young love," the Alternate Doctor said as the orb came up beside Rose. "It's nice that the Commitmentphobe is protecting the woman he's too chicken shit to marry. And granted, I would love to see him protecting his sweetheart but I must interfere and tell you to back off, Sabessa."

"You are going to die!" Sabessa said to the Doctor, ignoring his double. "You and this bitch of yours."

"Pardon?" the Alternate Doctor said, moving the orb in closer to Sabessa. "I must be going deaf; did you just ignore what I said and carry on with threatening my prisoners?"

"I'm no longer listening to you," Sabessa said to the orb. "I'm tired of you pushing my aside so you can dally with your little whore. I'm going to destroy all of them before I come after you!"

"How unfortunate," the Alternate Doctor said. "I will just have to retaliate then. Rose, my dear, if you will?"

The Doctor cried out with the others when Rose's hands gripped the sword swung it and cut off Sabessa's left leg near the thigh. Sabessa howled in agony as she fell to the ground and held what was left of her leg. Blood gushed out and began to pool around the stump as she moaned in agony. The Doctor made a move to help her but Rose's hand swung the sword, stopping just as the blade reached his throat.

"No, Doctor Do-Gooder, you're not going to save the bitch. You make one move towards her and you'll end up legless alongside her," the Alternate Doctor said. "Now march!"

The Doctor glared at the orb as he, Donna and Mara stepped past Sabessa. They took several steps when they heard a chopping sound and Rose crying out in anguish. They spun around and the color drained from the Doctor's face when he saw Sabessa's decapitated head beside her body and the stricken look on Rose's face as she stood beside her.

"You bastard!" the Doctor said when the orb flew over to him.

"I'm training her to be an assassin," the Alternate Doctor said calmly. "That was her first kill. You'll be her next victim if you don't move. Now go!"

The Doctor sighed angrily. He turned and walked with Donna and Mara, listening in anguish to Rose quiet sobs. As he walked, he considered erasing that memory from Rose's mind when they were back in their TARDIS so she wouldn't remember killing someone. He glanced over his shoulder and his hearts ached when he saw the despair in her eyes. He slowed his pace and let Rose catch up to him. Ignoring the orb who had moved back with him. He leaned in close to her ear.

"I can take that memory from your head, Rose, when we get away from here and back to the TARDIS," he whispered to her.

"P…please," Rose stuttered. "I d…don't wanna remember that."

The Doctor put his hand on the back of her head since he couldn't touch the electrified suit or touch her cheek since it was covered by the mask. He still was using his bypass system after having to take several deep breaths every so often since he couldn't keep from breathing indefinitely. He could sense Rose's despair and glanced at her. Rose's eyes were fixed to the ground. They were dull looking and the Doctor's heartbreak for her increased. He glanced at the orb and silently cursed his adversary for doing that to her.

Finally, after a half hour, the four of them were walking back into the open door of the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS. As soon as they got inside, they didn't see the Alternate Doctor. As they looked around, Donna and Mara suddenly vanished in a flash of light. The Doctor turned to protest to the orb but the orb was nowhere in sight. Then the TARDIS door slammed shut and the lights dimmed. The Doctor's senses were on red alert as he looked around for something that might jump out of them.

"Doctor, I'm free."

He looked at Rose and noticed the electricity was gone and Rose was now moving her arms freely. She gasped when the sword vanished from her hand in the same flash of light that had enveloped Donna and Mara.

"What's going on, what's he doing?" Rose asked the Doctor.

"Dunno but I'm sure it won't be pleasant," the Doctor said.

He walked with Rose towards the console but the moment he touched it, an electric shock made him jump back from the steel panels covering it.

"He's electrified it so we can't use it," the Doctor said to Rose. "Bang goes that idea then."

The lights dimmed even further and the Doctor took Rose's hand while his eyes tried to adjust to the dim light. Then when his vision had adjusted, the lights went out plunging them into complete darkness. The Doctor guided Rose into his arms, holding her from behind so no one could take her from him. The room was completely quiet except for their breathing and the Doctor strained to hear something, anything that would indicate someone was in the room with them. They stood there for a few minutes in the dark and the silence when suddenly…

"BWAAAAA!"

The Doctor and Rose yelled out when they heard the Alternate Doctor yelling behind them. The lights came up and they glared at him as he bent over laughing.

"Oh, that was priceless," the Alternate Doctor said, holding on the console for support as he continued to laugh. "Nothing like a good scare to give me the giggles. You probably thought a monster was coming to get you, didn't you? You should have heard your girly little screams. Aaaah, that was fantastic."

He slumped into his chair, still giggling, while the Doctor and Rose came over to him.

"Where are Donna and Mara?" the Doctor said.

"Oh, they're in a comfortable little cell back inside the TARDIS. My, my, you're quite taken with my former lover, aren't you? Into blue aliens now? Tiring of the doggies and need a Mollon for excitement?"

"She's twelve," the Doctor said.

"She is? No fooling? She looks much older that that. Ooops, s'pose I can add pedophile to my list of crimes, eh? Eh, it was worth it, she's a terrific lay. You oughta try her some time. But first things first…"

He got up, snapped his fingers and a force field surrounded the Doctor and Rose while the Alternate Doctor walked to the console.

"You know…the pair of you have given me food for thought," he said as he typed coordinates into his computer and began to start up his TARDIS.

"What do you mean?" the Doctor said.

"I mean, I have gotten a brilliant idea. Something to entertain me that involves the two of you," he said as the rotor started up. "And it will be beneficial for you and Rose as well."

"Oh really, what is this idea then?" the Doctor said.

The Alternate Doctor only chuckled in response and finished starting up his TARDIS. Once the TARDIS was on his way, he excused himself and left the room, leaving the Doctor and Rose imprisoned in the force field by the console.

"What'd you think he's planning?" Rose asked.

"Dunno, but I can't see anything he does being beneficial to us," the Doctor replied. "I know one thing, I'm tired of these bloody games of his."

"You and me both," Rose said.

They looked over when the Alternate Doctor came back into the room carrying a heavy red robe and Time Lord skull cap and frill. He laid it on the chair in front of his captives and with a cheerful whistle, left the room.

"What's that?" Rose said.

"Time Lord robes. What we used to wear back on Gallifrey."

"That? That was clothing on your planet?" Rose said, looking over her shoulder at him.

"For me, it was," the Doctor said. "I did wear other things but that was the normal outfit for Time Lords. He's a Prydonnian though, like I was."

"What's that mean?" Rose said.

"You know, Harry Potter?"

"Of course."

"It was the house I was in when I was at the Academy. Prydonnians were known for their cunning and several of my classmates became renegades like me."

"Oh, so you're Slytherin then? I pegged you for a Griffindor," Rose said.

"And you're a Hufflepuff but I wasn't going to mention it," the Doctor said, poking her side while Rose giggled.

The Alternate Doctor came back into the room carrying a white silk kimono that was trimmed in gold with embroidered gold flowers along the bottom. He laid it on top of the Time Lord regalia and left the room again. Rose admired the kimono and the gold stitching. She now noticed there was a gold seal of Rassilon embroidered on the right side of the kimono that would rest over the breast.

"That's beautiful. Did you wear that when you participate in the Prydonnian drag queen shows?" Rose teased.

She glanced back at the Doctor and saw the shocked look on his face.

"What is that?" Rose said.

"It's a wedding kimono. A Gallifeyan wedding kimono. Rose, I suddenly have an inkling of what my double has in mind for us."


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty Six

Rose was stunned into silence as she stared at the kimono. After several seconds, she found her voice again.

"He's…gonna marry us?" Rose said.

"Or he's going somewhere where we can get married," the Doctor said.

"And the robe is what you'd wear during the wedding?" Rose said, pointing to it.

"Yeah. It's not specifically a wedding robe but it's for formal occasions like that."

"But…why is he doing this?" Rose said.

"Shits and giggles probably. He was taunting us about not being married so I s'pose this is something for his amusement," the Doctor said.

Rose fell silent again as she stared at the kimono. She had often dreamed about marrying the Doctor but had never discussed it with him because she figured he'd see it as being too domestic so she had no idea what his feelings were about it. While she stared at the kimono, the Alternate Doctor came into the room carrying a silver chalice. The chalice had the seal of Rassilon engraved on it along with several gems that were set into the cup in a circle.

"And that's the wedding goblet," the Doctor said as he sat it down on top of the kimono.

"Quite so," the Alternate Doctor said, turning to them. "Can you figure out what I'm planning for you?"

"I think we figured out the what, it's the why I'm curious about, however," the Doctor said.

"The answer to that is because I'm a sentimental slob," the Alternate Doctor said, coming close to the force field. "See, I figure it's time for you two crazy kids to have a wedding. I mean, look at you, living in sin like a pair of…sinners. For shame, loving her without putting a ring on her finger. You'll burn in Hell for that one."

"If Hell exists, I have a feeling you'll be going to it before I do," the Doctor said to him.

The Alternate Doctor ignored him and turned back to the items on the chair. He picked up the chalice and turned it so the light would catch on the gems.

"Exquisite, isn't it? I purchased it a few centuries ago along with the wedding kimono when I was engaged to be married. The wedding fell through after I purchased these so I kept them figuring I would sell them. Never got around to doing it which is quite fortunate for you, eh?"

"What's your game then?" Rose said.

"I'm sorry?" the Alternate Doctor said with a frown.

"What's your ulterior motive for doing this?" the Doctor said. "Because it's not out of the goodness of your hearts, that's for bloody sure."

"Oh, look, I forgot the sash that comes with the kimono, how forgetful of me. Be right back, my little lovebirds!"

He quickly left the room before they could say anything else to him.

"He's up to something, Rose. This isn't just for his amusement. There's a sinister motive behind it or I'm a monkey's uncle," the Doctor said.

He noticed Rose had fallen silent and was staring at the kimono. He put his arms back around her and gently stepped up so she was against him.

"Penny for your thoughts?" he said to her.

"Do you want this to happen?" Rose said softly as she gestured at the items.

The Doctor thought about that.

"Would it matter if it didn't?" he said. "We love one another; do we need to be married to prove that?"

"No but…dunno, sometimes I thought about it," Rose said. "Were you going to get married like he was?"

"I was married once," the Doctor said after a moment of silence. "Had a child, a little boy."

Rose frowned, her brow furrowed in thought.

"That day when we helped Chloe, we were talking and…"

"I told you I was a dad once and you asked me to repeat it and I didn't because at the time I didn't mean to let that slip."

"That's what I thought you said but then I thought I must have heard wrong because all that talk of being anti-domestic."

"I wasn't always anti-domestic. I became so after I began traveling," he said.

"What happened to your wife and child after you left?"

The Doctor didn't say anything and Rose sensed his reluctance so she didn't press the issue, figuring they were straying into unpleasant territory for him. She gazed at the kimono, admiring its beauty. Then a moment later, she was a bit surprised to hear the Doctor speak.

"The Master killed them," he said quietly, "to get revenge on me when I tried to stop him after he first started committing his evil acts."

"I'm sorry," Rose said, her heart aching for him. "I'm sorry if I brought up a painful subject. You don't have to say anything else, yeah?"

The Doctor fell silent again and Rose leaned back into him and rubbed his arm, enjoying the fact that she could move her limbs again. But after another moment, he spoke again.

"I ran to get away from Gallifrey because I couldn't stand to be there any longer after what happened to my family," he said while Rose listened. "But after a bit, I started craving companionship and I met adopted an Earth girl named Susan. She was very young so I thought of her as my granddaughter. She traveled with me along with a couple of her teachers until I made her leave so she could have a life and get married and raise a family. After that, it was one companion after another but I never let myself get too close because of what happened to my family. I thought of them as friends and nothing more."

Rose was shocked that the Doctor was actually admitting all this and pouring her heart out to her and she dared not speak because she was afraid he'd stop what he was saying. Then he felt his arms tighten around her.

"That scheme worked until you came along," he said softly. "You were different, Rose. I couldn't help falling in love with you because you remind me so much of my wife."

Rose felt her eyes mist over and she squeezed his arm.

"You have her personality, her kind-heartedness, her sense of humor, you even resemble her somewhat," he said. "That's why when you said no to me when I asked you to come with me, I had to come back for you after I left. I wanted you to come with me so badly, Rose, that I broke my own rule of not badgering people to come with me if they've told me no. And then you helped me heal from all the trauma of the Time War and that made me love you even more. "

A tear fell down Rose's cheek and she sniffed as the Doctor rested his head against hers.

"What was her name?" she said softly.

"Lila."

"That's beautiful," Rose said.

"Yes, she was a beautiful woman, inside and out, just like you are."

"But you don't like weddings because of what happened to her?" Rose said.

"I'm not against marriage. I just never thought about it," the Doctor said with a shrug. "I figured what we had was enough. Besides, we were always busy running around, when would we ever find the time to get married? But…apparently, we are now finding the time if my double has his way. But even if this is his way of taunting us, I want you to know that you are like a wife to me in my hearts and that'll never change."

Rose felt like her heart was about to burst from joy as the Doctor squeezed her. She was about to tell him that she loved him when the Alternate Doctor strolled back into the room, gold sash in one hand and a cup of tea in the other.

"Sorry, took awhile to find the matching sash in the attic and I was parched, needed a cuppa," he said to them.

He noticed Rose's tear streaked face as he sat his cup down on the floor.

"What's this? Sadness? Come on, you're getting married," he said to her. "Be happy for a change, Rose. I'm tired of this maudlin behavior. Now…" he added, gathering up the kimono. "Try this on while you're in there. Gotta see if it fits. As for the robe, I know that'll fit you," he added to the Doctor as the TARDIS opened up a gap in the force field and he passed the kimono to Rose.

The Doctor let go of Rose when she took the kimono and sash. The Alternate Doctor stepped back and the hole in the force field closed up as he reached down for his cup. Rose stared at the kimono as she felt it. It was made of silk and cool to the touch.

"It's gorgeous," Rose murmured, wondering if Lila had worn something similar on her wedding day.

The Doctor took the sash and Rose held up the kimono for a moment, admiring it before she slipped it on. The Doctor directed her to fold the left side under the right side and then he slipped the sash around her, winding it around her body twice before tying it in a small bow in the back. When he was finished, Rose put her hand on her stomach, touching the silk while she admired it.

"Not bad, you look very beautiful in it," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Yes, you do," the Doctor said.

"Nice to know we're on the same page then. I'm taking you to an old friend of mine. He's a smuggler but before he did that, he was a minister. He'll perform the wedding."

"Why are you doing this…really?" the Doctor said. "You're not being a soppy, sentimental man, you're being cold and cruel and calculating and this is a method of torturing us. So tell us the truth about why you're doing this."

The Alternate Doctor took a sip of tea and smacked his lips.

"Delish," he said. "It's a special blend from Peking in the twelfth century. Want some?"

"Answer the question," the Doctor said, nearly at the end of his patience.

"Oh, if I must," the Alternate Doctor said with a theatrical sigh. "Fine. Yes, there's more to this than you crazy kids living in sin. I want your children to be legitimate. Nothing sucks more than a bastard Time Lord running around."

"The only bastard running around is you," the Doctor said.

"Oho, very witty, indeed. I have been felled by your witty retort and now…more tea."

He sniggered at the annoyed looks on his captive's faces as he took a sip of tea.

"Oh come now, play along and have fun. Don't you want kids?"

"I'm sterile," the Doctor said. "As was every other Gallifreyan."

Rose was shocked when she heard that. She didn't dare say anything the Doctor told her in front of his double but she wondered where his son came from if they couldn't conceive. Did he and Lila adopt him? She made a mental note to ask later when they were alone.

"Okay, so how did you keep your population up if no one could have children?" the Alternate Doctor said.

"You don't know?" the Doctor said.

"I'm not sterile, sunshine. Another example of how I'm better than you. So, tell me, how did you have children on your Gallifrey?"

"We had machines called looms that made children when two parties donated their DNA."

"Sounds boring. I prefer sex. By the way…if I'm not sterile, perhaps we need to check the future misses because I might have left a bun in her oven."

"I plan to check her to make sure she doesn't have a weird venereal disease you contracted from the ninety nine million partners you've had before her."

Rose couldn't help but laugh at that and she shrugged her shoulders and gave him a smug look when she saw the annoyance on the Alternate Doctor's face.

"I don't have any diseases, thank you very much," the Alternate Doctor replied. "Unlike you, who probably gave this poor woman cooties, mange and rocky mounted spotted fever all in one go. Maybe we need to hose you down after the marriage so you don't give her mad cow disease next. But…I digress…my reasons for you marrying her. Well, another reason is because if you marry her, ergo, I marry her so Rose will have two husbands. It'll be like sharing the wealth. Everyone wins!"

"You marry me to her and you're not putting one finger on her ever again!" the Doctor snarled at him.

"So…if I don't marry you, I can play roaming fingers with Rose all I want then?" the Alternate Doctor said, scratching his head in mock confusion. "Sounds like an odd thing to say but I never refused a three way yet."

"Of that, I have no doubt," the Doctor said dryly.

"But…the marriage will proceed as planned," the Alternate Doctor said after another sip of tea. "And as for not touching your wife…well, you won't be able to do much from beyond the grave, won't you?"

"And finally, the true reason comes to light," the Doctor said. "I knew this was some sadistic elaborate scheme to go along with my execution."

"Well, Rose will be in mourning and will need her second husband to comfort her. Particularly since she's the one that'll be doing the executing."

Rose paled at that and the Doctor put his arms around her when he noticed her staggering back.

"Yeah, see, I was telling Rose about this Japanese execution method called Death by a Thousand Cuts. Have you heard of it, Doctor?"

"No, don't make me do that to him," Rose said, shaking her head.

"Yes, I've heard of it," the Doctor said, his anger rising. "And I've seen it done before."

"I've done it myself, shame you haven't. It's fascinating. I used to work on criminals and after each execution; I always tried to see if I could go a bit farther and keep the bastard alive a bit longer than the last time. I got to where the man was basically a torso and a head before he died. Well…half a torso, to be precise. I was going to threaten Rose with that particular method of execution but hey, I told her I'd train her to be an assassin and now she has a practice dummy she can work on, emphasis on the dummy part, of course."

"Don't make me do that to him, I'm begging you," Rose said, her heart sinking.

"Now, now, Rose, you'll have a spare husband after you wed. It'll just be like disposing of an inferior model and concentrating on the top brand, which is me. The Doctor's probably been through far more than that in his life. Probably had several gruesome deaths before he regenerated, eh? He won't say a word, during it, trust me. Speaking of…I need to get your mourning robe ready since you won't be married to him long. Be prepared, that's my motto. We'll be landing soon so have fun in your last moments as single people before you're joined as one. I'm so happy for you crazy kids. Wedding bells are ringing! Toodles!"

He hurried out of the room, giggling insanely when the Doctor screamed curses at his back.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter Twenty Seven

After the Doctor stopped cursing, he held Rose against him while he tried to calm himself down.

"I'm so glad I'm not like him. There is just no limit to his evil and depravity," he said.

He noticed Rose had gone deathly still and her head was lowered towards the floor. He murmured her name, worry etched on his face.

"Rose, it's not the end," he said.

"Please kill me."

The Doctor's hearts ached as he leaned his head forward and kissed her head.

"You know I can't do that, my hearts," he murmured.

"Please," Rose said in a small voice. "Please end it now before I have to kill you."

"Rose, have faith in me. We'll get out of this, I swear," the Doctor said desperately. "He's playing mind games with us, trying to kill our hope and our spirits. You can't let him do that to you. Don't give in to him, please."

The Doctor stepped back, turned her around and lifted her head. Rose's eyes were dull and he could see the hopelessness in them. He stepped up to her and enveloped her in his hug. Rose didn't hug back but she laid her head on his chest and the Doctor rubbed her back, trying to give her some hope before her spirit was killed completely.

"Remember all those times he thought he won and we managed to get the upper hand?" he said softly to her. "We can do it again. This suit of his isn't foolproof. There are ways around it; we just have to find a solution. Perhaps get hold of that sword of his and cut it off you?"

Rose didn't respond and the Doctor continued to rub her back and hold her close to him while his mind worked overtime trying to come up with a way out of their situation.

"Doctor?"

"Hmm?"

"If there is no way out, will you kill me so I won't have to cut you up? If we're all gonna die anyway, what does it matter if I die first?"

"I promise, if there's absolutely no way out of this, I'll kill you so you won't have to cut me to pieces," he murmured.

"Thank you," Rose said before she finally hugged him back.

"Now will you promise me something?" the Doctor said.

"Promise you I won't give up hope till there's no hope left?"

"Rose, you can read minds, I never knew that!" the Doctor said with feigned shock.

He smiled when Rose managed a laugh and held her tight.

"So…promise me that?" the Doctor said.

"I promise," Rose said.

"Good. Because I rely on your strength just as much as you rely on mine and we need each other more than ever right now," he said to her. "He's not perfect, even though he thinks he is. He can make mistakes, we've already proven that so just be patient and keep your hope alive and an opportunity will more than likely present itself. Okay?"

"Okay," Rose said.

"Good, because I won't have my wife sullen and depressed on our honeymoon."

Rose chuckled at that and the Doctor hugged her tightly.

"Another thing you have in common with Lila is your beautiful smile and laugh. I like both," he said to her. "So keep em both coming because I'm needy in that respect."

Rose smiled at that, feeling her hope beginning to come back.

"So, where should we go on our honeymoon?" she said, fingering his lapel.

The Doctor smiled, happy that the old give and take banter was returning. He was eager to keep it up to keep Rose's hope going up and up and show her that all was not lost.

"Well, there is Plont," the Doctor said.

"Okay, where is Plont then?" Rose said.

"Plont is the Porno Pleasure Planet, say that three times fast," he said while Rose giggled. "We could go there and get the S&M deluxe package which would include a three night four day holiday complete with whips, chains, fuzzy handcuffs and a little Doberman named Fritz."

He gave Rose an innocent look when she looked up at him with a wry look on her face.

"Gee, sounds like you've been there before," she said.

"Yeah, had a man's day out with the Marquis De Sade," the Doctor said with a sniff. "He brought a French whore with him name Toutouf and we spent all day whipping her until she bled like Niagara Falls."

"Oh, you did not," Rose said, swatting him playfully on the chest while he snickered.

"No, really, we did. Then we collected the blood and had blood sausage for tea."

He laughed when Rose made a disgusted face at that.

"Ugh and I thought the other you was vulgar," she said.

"Well, Toutouf was a vulgar woman. Armpit hair like you wouldn't believe, and the sweat glistening on it as we whipped her."

"Doctor, Jesus!" Rose said while the Doctor laughed.

"Doctor Jesus? I don't think that's my name, I think that's two separate people come to think of it."

"Piss off," Rose said, rolling her eyes and grinning while the Doctor gave her a tender look.

He held her close to him and rubbed her back.

"See, I have the ability to lift your spirits like you have the ability to lift mine," he said to her. "That's why we're so perfect for each other."

"Yeah, but we won't be laughing when he starts making me chop you up," Rose said.

She looked at him.

"Sorry, I just can't help but be worried," she said. "I watched him torture you for a year; I'm not in the mood to see it again."

"Well, I'm not in the mood to experience it again either," the Doctor said. "You can't let despair overtake you though, that's what he wants. That's why he was out here doing his elaborate, let's have a wedding spiel so he could drop the bomb about you executing me. He's a sick, twisted bastard who I admit knows what he's doing but as I said, he's not infallible and me and you and Donna and Mara are more than a match for him. So let's see that Rose Tyler pluck you're so famous for. A little electric suit isn't gonna stop my future wife, no sirree bob. Not when she wants to slap the shit out of a certain little git."

"I wanna do more than slap at this point," Rose said.

"Like put him in my place and hack him up?"

"It's tempting but I'm not like him, so no to that. But I wanna see the bastard go down and go down hard."

"As do I which is why I keep looking for opportunities to exploit. Gotta get to Plont and have that whipping, you know."

Rose giggled at that and the Doctor kissed her forehead.

"Keep that laughter coming, Rose Tyler. I command you to laugh!"

"Yes, sir!" Rose said, saluting.

"Ugh, I keep telling everyone no salutes and they won't listen," the Doctor said, shaking his head while Rose laughed.

"Shall I bend down and kiss your arse instead?"

She laughed when the Doctor gave her an interested look while he thought that over.

"Tempting but better save it for Plonk. I don't want Itsy Bitsy walking in on us and wanting a three way. And by Itsy Bitsy I mean…you know…"

"Yes, I think I can guess what you mean," Rose said while he gave her a cheesy grin.

"Well, if he can call me Captain Craphole, I can call him Itsy Bitsy," he said.

"How about Dumbo Douchebag the Wonder Wanker?"

"He called me that?" the Doctor said. "Ooooh, it's on like Donkey Kong then," he said when she nodded and laughed. "Boy is going down so hard; he'll end up in China. And that's saying something since we're not even on Earth."

They looked over when the TARDIS landed and powered down.

"Hey!" the Doctor said, thrusting his finger at the console, "I'm your master, pretty much, listen to me and take us away from wherever it is you brought us. Take us to Plont instead."

He froze with his finger pointed at the console and Rose laughed when he feigned anger at the TARDIS not responding to him.

"Piece of junk, my TARDIS is tons better," he said, dropping his arm and looking at Rose. "My TARDIS obeys my slightest commands, unlike this hunk of junk."

"Better not say that, she might kill you," Rose said.

"I think this is a he and I'm not afraid of him. Bring him on," the Doctor said.

They quickly shut up when the Alternate Doctor entered the room. But the Doctor had an idea before he reached them and bent into her ear.

"Act submissive to him, act like all hope is lost so he's caught off guard when we do find a way to escape. And get dramatic, he seems to love that."

"Gotcha," Rose quickly whispered in his ear.

She lowered her head and her eyes to the floor, trying not to crack a smile when the Alternate Doctor came up to their prison.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty Eight

"So, all ready for your wedding?" the Alternate Doctor asked as he slapped his hands together.

"You know, you don't have to go through with this wedding rubbish. You can just skip to the execution," the Doctor said.

"Rubbish? Weddings are not rubbish and you two should have a wonderful wedding. Executions can wait," the Alternate Doctor said.

Rose knew that if they were going to have a chance to fight back, she had to keep the suit off. She didn't know how much of a chance they had but she was determined to fight back and escape before her Doctor was dismembered piece by piece. She had to pretend to be submissive, like the Doctor said, but not to overdo it so the Alternate Doctor wouldn't realize what was going on. For the moment, she stayed in her Doctor's arms, loving the feel of his body against hers while he rubbed her back lovingly.

"Now," the Alternate Doctor said to the Doctor. "Are you going to wear your robes for this?"

"Yeah, give them to me," the Doctor said.

"You are Prydonnian, right?" the Alternate Doctor said to him.

The Doctor nodded and the Alternate Doctor passed him the Time Lord outfit after the TARDIS made another opening in the force field. Rose stepped back and helped him get the robe on as he put it over his clothes. Then Rose stood back and watched while he put on the skullcap and frill. The Doctor eyed her when she began giggling.

"I know what you're thinking," the Doctor said while she giggled. "You think I look daft."

Rose nodded and grinned when the Doctor feigned anger.

"Just glad you don't normally wear this, that's all I'm saying," Rose said, holding up her hands.

"Okay, I'm ready now, Matchmaker," the Doctor said.

"Excellent. TARDIS, ready another force field cell and bring Donna and Mara into it."

A force field appeared next to the other force field and there was a bright flash before Donna and Mara appeared in it. They looked around and Donna did a double take when she saw the Doctor.

"What sort of rubbish outfit is that?" she said, pointing to his robe.

"I'll have you know this is what Time Lords wore," the Doctor said while Rose snickered. "And it's not rubbish, thank you very much."

"If you say so," Donna said. "I'm glad I never had to wear something like that."

Mara tried to walk over to them but was stopped by the force field. She looked at the Alternate Doctor who was watching her with amusement.

"What are you doing to us?" she asked him.

"Well, I believe I'm holding you prisoner until I get your word that you won't try to run away. You see, you and Donna need to be witnesses."

"Witnesses to what?" Donna said.

"Their wedding. That's why they're all dressed up," the Alternate Doctor said, pointing to Rose and the Doctor.

"What?" Donna said after he and Mara stared at him in shock for a few seconds. "Wedding? You're threatening to kill us all and now we're having a wedding?"

"The wedding is part of the threatening to kill us all," the Doctor said to her.

"How? He's gonna shove the wedding cake down your throat or shove the bouquet down Rose's throat."

"Hmm, those are interesting ideas actually," the Alternate Doctor said. "But no, the wedding is only the first step."

He briefly explained what was going on while Donna and Mara listened in shock. When he finished, Donna shook her head.

"Rose warned me about how twisted you were but I think this goes beyond even what she was telling me," she said.

"Rose, you were talking bad about me to others? Shame!" the Alternate Doctor said, wagging his finger at her. "I'll have to spank you for that. But we'll leave that for later. For now, we have an appointment to keep with my friend."

"And does your friend know how to conduct a traditional Gallifreyan wedding?" the Doctor said to him. "I assume we're having one since we got dressed up like this."

"I can walk him through it," the Alternate Doctor said. "Now…are you going to behave if I drop the force fields or do I have to make Rose go back to being guard dog?"

"No, we won't resist," the Doctor said before Donna and Mara could say something.

Everyone else nodded in agreement and the Alternate Doctor ordered the force field to be dropped. Donna and Mara ran to Rose and hugged her and she smiled as she hugged them back.

"Now, do be aware that I have a remote control for Rose's outfit and I can turn it back on and control her with it so behave yourselves. Now, follow me."

The Doctor took Rose's hand and they followed the Alternate Doctor to the door after he grabbed the goblet. To their relief, when he opened the door, the air was clear and they could breathe without masks. A yellow sun was burning high in the sky and near it was a distant Saturn-like planet that looked ghostly in the light of the day. They were at the bottom of a valley in a clearing. Ringed around them were trees that covered the sides of the valley from the bottom to the top. A few birds flew overhead, faintly chirping as they headed for the trees. In the clearing was a large farm. There was a two story farmhouse with a wraparound porch that had once been purple but the sun and elements had faded the color to a weather-beaten violet. Behind the farm was a white barn and in back of that was a large fenced in area where several animals roamed. Three of the beasts resembled black and white spotted ox and the others looked like black kangaroos. Off to the side of that was a rickety old shed that had seen better days.

"I thought you said your friend was a smuggler," Rose said to the Alternate Doctor after glancing around at the farm.

"He is but not all the time. He was a minister and then began smuggling and now he lives on the farm his parents left him so he tends to that as well. He's quite versatile," the Alternate Doctor said.

They walked up onto the porch and walked to the wooden front door. The Alternate Doctor knocked while the others waited.

"Have you ever been here before?" Rose asked the Doctor in a soft voice.

"Not sure where here is, otherwise I'd tell ya," the Doctor replied. "Pleasant looking though."

The Alternate Doctor muttered under his breath and knocked again.

"Come on, Bazz, open up," he muttered.

"WHAT? WHO IS IT?" a gruff voice yelled through the door.

"It's One Eye, Bazz, open up."

"One Eye?" Donna said.

"His nickname for me, problem with it, ginger?" the Alternate Doctor said, looking over his shoulder at her.

The door opened and the Doctor and his companions stepped back in shock. The man was a behemoth. He was nearly seven foot tall with muscles that Arnold Schwarzenegger would envy. He had a five o clock shadow on his craggy, scarred face and a unibrow over his beady brown eyes. The top of his head was shaved with a just a bit of growth on his bald head. He was wearing a leather vest and they could see several tattoos on his chest and arms. He wore black leather trousers with black boots. He glared at everyone before he turned his attention to the Alternate Doctor.

"Yeah? What'd ya want?" he said to the Alternate Doctor.

"I need a favor, Bazz."

Bazz snorted.

"I believe I've done you many favors, One Eye. When are you gonna do me one instead?" he said in a gruff voice.

Everyone looked down when a tabby cat came around Bazz's legs and stepped out onto the porch. The cat walked over to Rose and she smiled when the cat began to rub up against her legs.

"Hello, puss," she said, reaching down to pet it.

The cat purred and walked back and forth under her hand, arching its back each time he turned and walked back.

"That's Judy," Bazz said to Rose. "She belonged to me mum."

"She's beautiful," Rose said.

"Yeah. I promise mum I'd look after her before she died. Now…" he said, turning his attention back to the Alternate Doctor. "What's this favor you be wanting from me?"

"I need you to perform a wedding for me. Those two," he said, pointing to the Doctor and Rose. "They're getting married and I told them I knew my old friend, Bazz, would be happy to do it."

"Oh, is that what you said?" Bazz said, raising an eyebrow. "Well, your favors are all used up. It's gonna cost ya, One Eye."

The Alternate Doctor narrowed his eyes, aware that everyone behind him was watching this exchange with quiet interest since it was amusing to see someone else defying the Time Lord for a change. Naturally, the Alternate Doctor was pissed off at this defiance.

"You can do another favor for me," the Alternate Doctor said, trying not to lose his temper.

"Nope, I want payment. I've been screwed over too many times by you," Bazz said, folding his massive arms over his chest.

"Fine, you can have ginger here," the Alternate Doctor said, gesturing to Donna.

"Over my dead body," the Doctor said.

"Keep running your gob and that'll come sooner than you think," the Alternate Doctor growled at him. "Fine," he said to Bazz, "you can have first go at the bride. I believe that's what feudal lords used to do on Earth whenever a surf got married."

"Again, over…"

"Shut it, or I turn her suit back on," the Alternate Doctor said to the Doctor as he jabbed his finger at him. "Well, how 'bout it?"

"Did it ever occur to you that I might be busy, mate?" Bazz said.

"So? Get unbusy and do this for me!" the Alternate Doctor said.

Bazz looked at Rose. She had backed up to the Doctor and he was standing behind her with his hands on her shoulders. Bazz noticed she looked scared and began to wonder what was going on. Keeping calm, he looked at the Alternate Doctor.

"Okay, I will but I need a word with the bride and groom first since I need to get some information," he said.

"Fine, go ahead," the Alternate Doctor said with a shrug. "Ask away."

"In private," Bazz said, stepping around him. "Come with me, you two," he said before the Alternate Doctor could protest. "Go inside, One Eye, there's some drinks in the refrigerator along with some sandwiches. You lot make yourself at home while I talk to the bride and groom. And that means behave yourself. All of you are my guests and this is my house and you're not to abuse anyone in it, got that?"

He gave the Alternate Doctor a menacing look when the Time Lord was about to protest.

"Let them relax," Bazz said, pointing to Donna and Mara, "and keep your hands off them or I won't do anything for you. Got it?"

"Got it," the Alternate Doctor said in a terse voice.

"Good. I know how you are with women and I won't have that in my house. Now that we have that out of the way, you come with me," he said to the Doctor and Rose as he passed by them.

The Doctor and Rose shared an amused glance and looked at the Alternate Doctor who was incensed.

"Gotta do what Muscles says," the Doctor said before he and Rose followed Bazz. "Behave yourself, Doctor, and have a sandwich. Be back soon. Toodles."

The Alternate Doctor clenched his teeth as his face turned beet red in silent rage. Donna noticed Judy was rubbing up against her shin. She reached down and picked her up.

"Come on, Mara, let's go get something to drink since we're free to do what we want in here," she said to her friend as she petted the purring cat.

Donna and Mara tried not to laugh as they headed inside the house. The Alternate Doctor grumbled under his breath and walked to the side of the porch, keeping his eyes on his prize captives as they followed Bazz towards the barn.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty Nine

Bazz led the Doctor and Rose into the barn. The inside was dark and musty and straw covered the wooden floor. On either side of them were stables and Rose noticed one of the ox creatures was in one of them. Bazz led them to the back of the barn and checked to make sure they were alone before he addressed the Doctor and Rose.

"Okay, what's this all about?" he said to them. "One Eye's asked me to do many things but not to perform a wedding. Will you tell me what's going on?"

"Gladly," the Doctor said before he briefly explained the situation to him.

When he was finished, Bazz shook his head.

"I'm sorry, mate. I'm sorry you lot got caught up in his latest scheme," he said with a sympathetic look. "I used to work with him but I got tired of the smuggler's life and wanted out. That's why I agreed to look after my parent's farm when they died. I did some bad things in me time but nothing compared to what he does. My sympathies."

"Can you help us then?" Rose said. "He wants to kill us. He's making me wear this suit that controls my body and he wants me to cut up the Doctor into tiny pieces."

"Doctor? You're the Doctor?" Bazz said to him.

"Yes, I'm the Doctor and this is Rose. The red haired woman is Donna and the blue skinned woman is Mara."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Bazz. He told me about both of you. Fancied you," he said to Rose. "And you, he told me one time he wanted to cut you up in a meat grinder and turn you into sausage."

The Doctor rolled his eyes while Rose giggled.

"So, do you lot wanna get married. Because I am licensed to do it," Bazz said.

"Well, I wouldn't mind it, I s'pose but I was wondering if there was a way you could disable her suit so he can't control her anymore," the Doctor said, pointing to the black suit just visible through the opening in the top of the kimono.

"Well, I can't guarantee anything but I'll have a go. Better bring her into an empty stable since I need a torch. Don't want One Eye seeing the light and coming to investigate. Go in that one," he said, pointing to the stable off to their right.

The Doctor squeezed Rose's hand as Bazz went into another part of the barn.

"See, there's always hope," he said to Rose before they shared a kiss.

They walked over to the stable and the Doctor opened the door. The air inside smelled faintly of manure but the floor was clean with fresh straw on it. Bazz returned a moment later with a black toolbox and a torch. The Doctor untied the sash and helped Rose out of the kimono as he sat the toolbox down on the floor and turned on the torch. Using the torch, he opened his toolbox and fished out a small screwdriver.

"Now, let's have a look at this, yeah?" he said, walking over to Rose.

He shined the light on the metal collar and the Doctor stood off to one side while he walked around Rose examining it. He got over to her right side and then nodded.

"Yup, I see some screws here. Hold still," he said to Rose.

Rose stood still and the Doctor took the torch from Bazz, holding it up to the collar while Bazz worked on the screws.

"If you ask me, you should keep this on her for the moment," Bazz said to the Doctor. "I can shut it down so he can't operate it but if you're trying to escape from him, perhaps it's best to keep up appearances for the moment."

"I agree," the Doctor said.

"I'm thinking that also means having the wedding. Unless you aren't a couple."

"Oh, we are, we're very much a couple," the Doctor said.

"Would you object to a wedding? You can always get it annulled later on," Bazz said.

"I wouldn't mind, like I said. Rose? Would it kill you to be married to me?"

"No, I hate your guts, burn in hell."

Bazz gave the Doctor an amused look when Rose giggled at the Doctor's raised eyebrow.

"Sounds like she's a bit of a spitfire, mate."

"Oh, she is, trust me," the Doctor said.

"Just kidding. I'd love to be married to him," Rose said.

"Well, I'd be happy to perform the wedding for ya. Let's seeee, I believe I can disable it with this wire here…and what I was saying to One Eye about payment. He mentioned the rights to shag Rose here. I might be able to use that to our advantage if you play along with me."

"Anything you can do to help us escape is fine by me," the Doctor said.

"Well, let me make a few phone calls after the wedding. I have friends that can take you to safety if you can make it to the woods behind my house. They're also former smugglers and they have secret hiding places that they used to hide themselves and goods from the authorities. They can harbor you and help you get away."

"Thank you, we'd be grateful for that," the Doctor said.

"Ah, I think that's done it," Bazz said, disconnecting a wire. "Now I'll close this and put the screws back and he should be none the wiser unless he tries to turn it on."

"How can we ever repay you for this?" Rose said to him.

"Eh, don't worry about it. Unlike One Eye, I will be happy to work for free for you. Now, better get your outfit back on so we can get out of here. One Eye isn't known for being patient."

"Tell me about it," Rose said.

"By the way, is that what you're wearing to the wedding?" Bazz said to the Doctor as he pointed to his outfit. "I know One Eye doesn't like you very much but I would have humiliated you some other way."

"This is the robe my people wore during their weddings," the Doctor said in an annoyed voice while Rose laughed.

"Sorry, mate, I don't know much about your people," Bazz said, holding up his hands. "Just I would have chosen something more comfortable for my wedding day."

"Well, I'm not the one that came up with this," the Doctor said while Rose chuckled and drew near to him. "It's not my idea of comfort either, especially since I kept my normal clothes on underneath it so I wouldn't lose them."

Bazz nodded.

"Well, we better go back to the house before One Eye cottons on. Follow me. And don't let him intimidate you. He might be a brute but I'm bigger and stronger than he is and he's not going to torture or kill you while I'm around."

The Doctor and Rose thanked him. The Doctor took Rose's hand, gave it a squeeze and they followed him back to the house.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

"Took you long enough," the Alternate Doctor said when they walked up to the porch. "What were you doing in there?"

"Interviewing them, One Eye," Bazz said as they climbed the stairs. "If I'm gonna be the minister, I want to get to know the people I'm marrying. I asked them to tell me a bit about themselves. Honestly, you're so paranoid, it's pitiful sometimes."

The Doctor and Rose tried not to laugh at the incensed look on the Alternate Doctor's face. They could tell he was itching to say something nasty but the look Bazz was giving him stopped him cold.

"And what about payment?" the Alternate Doctor said, folding his arms over his chest. "Do you still want that?"

"Perhaps, I'm considering having a go at Rose here before her husband does."

"Over my dead body," the Doctor said, feigning anger.

"He's been saying that a lot lately, I think he wants to die," the Alternate Doctor said to Bazz. "You don't get any choice in the matter, mate. I'm going through the trouble of doing this for you so you can spare Rose for a bit. It won't kill ya. I'm sure you weren't the slut's first anyway."

"That'll do, these are our guests, after all," Bazz said.

"And I suppose you're gonna let them go raid the fridge now?" the Alternate Doctor said.

"Unlike you, I don't stuff people in cages and dance around them while I taunt them 24/7," Bazz said. "That suit guarantees they'll behave themselves, right?"

"Yup," the Alternate Doctor said.

"Well, as long as they behave, let them be. Let them have a bit of rest and happiness before you kill them, right?"

"Whatever, yeah, go and get a drink or use the loo or do something to get out of my face," the Alternate Doctor said, giving them a dismissive wave. "But if you try to escape, the suit goes back on and I'll make Rose beat the shit out of all of you."

"Don't worry, we'll behave," the Doctor said. "Come on, Rose, let's go inside."

He took her hand and they walked inside. When they went through the door, they saw Donna and Mara sitting on a battered, tan leather sofa. They were sipping cans of soda while Mara stroked Judy who was sleeping beside her.

"They let you dogs off your leash too?" Donna said.

The Doctor nodded. He motioned for them to go to the kitchen and put his finger to his lips. Donna and Mara got up and followed them into the kitchen. The Doctor opened the fridge door, telling them quietly what just happened while he got himself and Rose some sodas. Donna and Mara shared gleeful looks when they found out Bazz was on their side.

"We have to play along though," the Doctor said softly. "Pretend that he's still on the other Doctor's side for the moment until we can get out of here and get to the woods."

They nodded and the Doctor closed the fridge door. They went back into the living room. Donna surrendered her space on the sofa and went to sit in a matching recliner on the other side of the room. Mara sat down beside the Doctor and Rose. The Doctor took off his skullcap and frill and sat them on the floor at his feet before he opened the can and he and Rose sipped their soda.

"Yum," Rose said, licking her lips when she tasted the sweet liquid. "This is good. What is it?"

She examined the can and frowned.

"What's Frocklin?" she asked the Doctor. "Says this is made of frocklin."

"Dunno but it's good, whatever it is," the Doctor said.

"I'm just hoping it's not poo from one of those cow things out there," Donna said as she rocked in the recliner and took a sip.

Rose smiled when Judy jumped into her lap.

"Seems I made a friend here," she said, petting her while Judy purred and kneaded her paws on the kimono.

The Doctor swallowed some soda and watched the cat using her claws on the kimono.

"Normally, I would tell you to get the cat off that kimono since it's an antique but since it belongs to the arsehole out there, rip away," he said.

He put the can to his lips, intending to take another sip when he noticed Mara staring at the robe.

"Okay, say whatever sarky comment you have to say about my robe," he said while Rose giggled. "I know you want to."

"Aren't you hot in that thing?" Mara said.

"Yes, I am, thanks," the Doctor said while Rose and Donna howled with laughter. "I would be less hot if I wasn't wearing a full suit under it but since I don't want to wear this after the wedding, I'm keeping my suit on me. So yes, robe plus suit equals hot, hot, hot."

"Hot, hot, hot doesn't even begin to describe it," Rose purred.

Donna and Mara laughed when the Doctor stared at Rose. He raised his leg and pulled up the robe to his ankle.

"Does this make you randy?" he said, rotating his ankle.

"Oh yes, pinstripes and plimsols get me all hot and sweaty," Rose said in a throaty voice.

"Okay, I'm going to look for a sandwich now while you mount each other," Donna said, quickly getting up and heading to the kitchen.

"I'll have a ham sandwich while you're in there," the Doctor yelled to her.

"I see you're having a good time."

Everyone turned their head to see the Alternate Doctor coming into the room.

"Yes," the Doctor said to him as he slammed the door, "we frequently do when you're not around. In fact, this is how we normally act when the specter of death isn't being held over our heads."

"You're not out of danger yet, Doctor. Just because you're getting a reprieve doesn't mean you're gonna escape," the Alternate Doctor growled at him.

"Perhaps not, but for the moment, we're guests of your giant friend and this is his house and he's the one in charge of it, not you. I'm pretty sure if you touch any of us, he'll be breaking your arms off at the shoulders so while we're here, we're gonna have a laugh and enjoy ourselves. Soooo, relax and have a soda."

The Alternate Doctor narrowed his eyes. He glanced back out the window beside the door. The Doctor followed his gaze and he smiled when he saw Bazz was on his portable phone. He figured he made his double come inside so he could call his friends and he doubted he was going to let him go back outside to rant and rave in his face. The Doctor put his free hand behind his head and sipped his soda while the Alternate Doctor glowered at him. He tried to hide his smile behind the can when the Alternate Doctor stomped off towards the bathroom, muttering curses under his breath.

"Bet he's regretting coming here now," Rose said to the Doctor when they heard the bathroom door slam.

"I bet he is as well and I'm sure he'll regret it more if his friend lets us escape," the Doctor said softly. "It appears Bazz is ringing his friends now."

"Good, I hope he gets them to help," Rose said softly.

The Doctor nodded and took another sip of soda. While he was doing that, Donna peeked around the kitchen door.

"Are you finished mounting each other?"

Rose and Mara giggled with the Doctor held the liquid in his mouth and then swallowed loudly.

"Yes, want a go at me next?" he said to her.

"No thanks, I stick with my own species," Donna said, coming out of the kitchen with two sandwiches in her hand.

"But they always say, once you go Time Lord, you'll never be bored," the Doctor said while Rose nearly choked on the liquid in her mouth and shook with silent laughter.

"Just eat your sandwich and shut your gob," Donna said, putting one in his lap before going back to the recliner.

"But I said ham, not indescribable grey meat I've never seen before," the Doctor said after checking it.

"Whatever, just eat it," Donna said while the Doctor smiled and winked at Rose.

They relaxed for a couple of hours before Bazz came into the room and faced them.

"He's wanting to do the wedding now so you lot ready?" he asked them.

"I s'pose we have no choice since this is my double's idea and he's calling the shots," the Doctor said as everyone got up.

"Follow me, I know a good spot for it," Bazz said.

The Doctor took Rose's hand and everyone followed him to the front door.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter Thirty One

Bazz led them around the right side of the house. About thirty feet away was a large tree that had purple fruit hanging off it. Underneath the tree was a piece of wood. The goblet and a short gold braided rope with tassels on either end were sitting on it. While they walked, Bazz glanced over his shoulder at the Doctor. He glanced at the Alternate Doctor who was walking about ten feet ahead of him. Keeping his eyes on the Alternate Doctor, Bazz opened his leather vest, took a long bulky envelope out of an inner pocket and held it behind his back, waving it at the Doctor to indicate to him that he should take it. The Doctor quickly took it and handed it back to Donna. Donna lifted her shirt, put it halfway down the top of her trousers and put her shirt down over it, smoothing it out so no one would see the bulge.

When they reached the tree, Rose looked up at the purple fruit hanging from it. They were slightly larger than grapes but shaped like blueberries.

"Are these edible?" she asked Bazz, pointing at the fruit above her.

"Oh yeah, I actually pick these and sell them at market. Try some," Bazz said.

Rose and the others reached up and picked some while the Alternate Doctor conferred with Bazz about what he needed to do. Rose picked several of the little berries and popped one in her mouth.

"Oh," she said, after swallowing it, "these are good. We should skip the wedding and spend the day eating these things."

The Alternate Doctor and Bazz finished their conference and they turned. They arranged the Doctor and Rose under the branches of the tree while Mara and Donna stood behind them and acted as witnesses. Rose finished the last berry and the Doctor chuckled when she kept plucking them from above her head and popping them in her mouth while they waited for the ceremony to start.

"I'm thinking these will have to serve as our wedding cake," the Doctor said, pointing up to the berries.

"Fine with me," Rose said, plucking another one from a branch above her head. "I could eat these all day."

The Doctor poked her when the Alternate Doctor gave Rose an exasperated look. Rose shrugged.

"What? I can eat and listen at the same time," she said to the Alternate Doctor.

She sighed when the Alternate Doctor glared at her and licked the remaining juice off her lips before she took the Doctor's hand.

"There is some Gallifreyan words that go with the ceremony, you know," the Doctor said to his double. "Did you give Bazz a crash course in how to speak our language?"

"No, I'm handling that part of it. He can do the rest," the Alternate Doctor said.

Everyone fell silent while the Alternate Doctor began to speak in Gallifreyan. Rose frowned when no translation was provided and leaned in to whisper to the Doctor, asking him what he was saying.

"It's basically a speech about our responsibilities to one another as husband and wife, that sort of thing," he replied.

"And what are my responsibilities then?"

"Cook me good meals and give me massages twice daily."

"Shh," the Alternate Doctor hissed at them.

"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt your elegant recital of what it takes to be a husband. My bad. Do carry on," the Doctor said while Rose rolled her eyes.

The Alternate Doctor continued. He eyed Rose when she quickly plucked another berry off the branch above her and popped it in her mouth. The Doctor grinned at that and leaned into her ear.

"Careful, you don't want the suit turned back on, do ya?" he teased.

She leaned into her ear.

"Let him try," she said while he chuckled.

They straightened up when the Alternate Doctor gave them a look of death. The Doctor gestured for him to continue and he finished his speech. Then he whispered in Bazz's ear.

"Shh!"

The Doctor, Rose and Donna sniggered when the Alternate Doctor glared at Mara the moment she mockingly shushed him.

"You did it to her," Mara said, pointing to Rose.

"Ooo, that took guts," the Doctor whispered to Rose who nodded in agreement.

"Okay," Bazz said to the Doctor. "Did you hear everything that One Eye said and do you agree with it?"

"Yes," the Doctor said.

"And Rose, did you hear everything that One Eye said and do you agree with it?"

"Um…I heard it but I have no idea what he said but I'll agree with it since it's probably true," Rose said while Mara and Donna held in their laughter.

"Doctor, will you take this woman to be your mate through all of your lives until you die?" Bazz asked him.

"I do," the Doctor said, gazing into Rose's eyes.

"Rose, do you take this man to be your mate through all of your lives until you die?" Bazz said.

"She's human, ya git," the Alternate Doctor said while the Doctor and Rose snickered. "She only has one life."

"Whatever," Bazz said, ignoring the dirty look he got from the Alternate Doctor when that came out of his mouth. "Rose, do you take him to be your husband for as long as you live."

"I do," Rose said as the Doctor grinned from ear to ear.

Rose glanced at Bazz when he bent down to get the goblet and she quickly plucked another berry from the branch and popped it in her mouth.

"Stop that, I don't want a fat wife," the Doctor teased while Donna and Mara giggled.

"I can't help it, they're good," Rose said while the Alternate Doctor eyed her.

Bazz handed the goblet to the Doctor. He stared at Rose over the rim of the cup while he drank the smoky looking liquid within it. Once he had drank a big swallow of juice he handed it to Rose and Donna and Mara laughed when she grabbed a bit of his robe and wiped down the spot where his lips had been.

"I don't have any diseases, Rose," the Doctor said as Rose tried not to laugh while she took a big swig of juice.

Once they were finished, she passed the goblet to Bazz and started to reach up for another berry. Donna and Mara giggled when the Alternate Doctor swatted the hand.

"Stop that or I'm cutting it off," he said to her.

"Oi, I'm not interfering with your bloody wedding. Stop being so anal," Rose said angrily. "Sheesh."

The Doctor moved his hand up and took hold of her arm so their wrists were next to each other. Rose watched while the Alternate Doctor wound the rope around them and tied it so the tassels hung together on the side. Then the Alternate Doctor spoke more Gallifreyan.

"He's saying we're joined together," the Doctor told Rose. "And hopefully our union will remain strong like the rope and never be severed."

"Aw, that's sweet."

The Doctor bit his lip when Rose reached up and plucked another berry from the branch. The Alternate Doctor stopped for a second to glare at her before finishing up. Rose gave him a cheeky grin and popped it in her mouth.

"There," the Alternate Doctor said in English as he untied the rope. "You're now husband and wife."

"Brilliant. And now for some cake," he said, plucking a berry from the branch.

The Alternate Doctor rolled his eyes as Rose joined him. Donna and Mara clapped when they popped the berries in their mouths, kissed each other and opened their mouths. They snogged for a second and then closed their mouths.

"We just exchanged berries," the Doctor said. "I s'pose that's just as good as wedding rings, eh? So, when will my wife put me to death then?" he asked his double.

"Soon, just enjoy your night together. Oh wait, Bazz gets first shot at her. Tough luck, I'm afraid. You'll just have to wait your turn."

Bazz shot the Doctor a knowing look before the Alternate Doctor ordered everyone back inside the house. The Doctor took his wife's hand and gave her a wink before they followed Donna and Mara back to the house.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter Thirty Two

The moment they were inside the house, the Alternate Doctor herded them into Bazz's bedroom. He shut the door and warned them to stay inside because he and Bazz were going to have a meeting.

"What? No reception for me and the misses?" the Doctor yelled when he slammed the door.

The Alternate Doctor didn't reply and the Doctor shrugged.

"Oh well," he said. "Leaves us time to look at the envelope. Donna, if you would be so kind…"

The Doctor took off his skullcap, frill and robe and Rose took off her kimono while Donna pulled out the envelope and opened it. She read the first page while the Doctor breathed a sigh of relief at having the heavy robe off his body.

"It's instructions for us," Donna said softly as they came close to one another. "He's telling us what to do when we escape and…" she looked at the other pages. "He drew a map and has the names and numbers of his friends."

"Brilliant," the Doctor said, taking the information from her. "We need to come up with a plan of our own though, we need to find a way back to Pumice and our TARDIS."

"Doctor," Rose said, touching his arm, "do you have your mobile with you? The one Martha gave you?"

"I think so, why? Martha can't do anything for us, unless you're wanting to tell her about the wedding?"

"No, but she knows Jack, yeah? Jack has that vortex thing, doesn't he?"

The Doctor stared at her for a moment and then a grin spread over his face as he stood up and searched in his pocket.

"I don't think I put it back in the cubbyhole on the console," the Doctor said softly. "Please say I forgot to put it back and…oh!"

He pulled it out with a triumphant grin.

"Who's Martha?" Mara asked as he opened it and went to the address book.

"An old friend who knows another old friend who might be able to give us a lift back to the TARDIS," the Doctor said to her as he found Martha's number.

He selected it and patted Rose on the head while the phone rang.

"I want more berries," Rose said. "I got addicted to those little bleeders and now I'm in here."

"Sounds like we have to make a stop by the berry tree before we escape," Donna said.

"No, we're not stopping by the bleedin' berry tree and…Martha," the Doctor said while the women giggled. "Martha, good to hear from ya. You'll never believe what's happened to us."

He quietly and quickly told Martha the situation.

"Can you ring Jack for us?" the Doctor asked her.

"Yeah, hang up and I'll ring him and ask him to call you," Martha said.

"No. We can't risk my double hearing the ringtone. Just give me his number and I'll do it," the Doctor said. "If he can come here directly, we might even be able to bypass Bazz's friends and just head back to the TARDIS."

"What about the other Doctor though?" Martha said. "You're gonna let him escape?"

"No, but I want my TARDIS before I try to stop him," the Doctor said. "He needs to be contained and she can do that for us."

Martha gave him Jack's number and the Doctor quickly committed it to memory. He thanked Martha and after promising to call her back when they were safe, he ended the call. Donna went to the door and listened for the Alternate Doctor while the Doctor quickly dialed Jack's number. It rang three times and then Jack answered.

"Harkness," he said.

"Jack, it's the Doctor."

"Doctor! What a surprise. What's up?"

The Doctor again quickly and quietly filled him in on what was happening. While he was doing that, Mara came over and sat down beside Rose on the bed. Rose smiled at her and patted her hand.

"We'll get outta here, Jack'll help," she said to her.

"What's gonna happen to me though?" Mara said. "I'd like to stay with all of you."

"Well, I'm sure the Doctor wouldn't mind, you've helped us so far and that's what he likes is someone willing to help," she said.

"Wait a tic," the Doctor said, "talk to Rose for a moment. I'll be right back."

Rose gave the Doctor a questioning look as he handed her the mobile. She put it to her ear while the Doctor walked to the door.

"Heya," Rose said.

"Blondie! You and the Doctor finally took the plunge, albeit at the point of a gun or sword or whatever that bastard had. So, the fucker found you again, huh?"

"Yup, unfortunately," Rose said.

"Hey, can I talk to Bazz for a moment? I need to ask him a question," the Doctor said as he stuck his head outside the door.

Rose glanced around and quickly got up, walked around to the other side of the bed and lay down so she wouldn't be seen if the Alternate Doctor came in the room. Donna sat down in her place and carried on a loud conversation with Mara, trying to drown out Rose's conversation with the Doctor.

"What's the Doctor doing?" Rose said softly to Jack.

"I…think he needed to know where the hell you are so I can come get you, like the name of the planet you're on."

"Oh! Okay, that makes sense," Rose said.

She told Jack to wait a moment when she heard the Doctor talking to Bazz after he came in the room and shut the door.

"We have a friend that has a vortex manipulator and he can come and get us and take us back to our TARDIS so we don't have to bother your friends but we need to know where we are so he can have the coordinates," the Doctor said softly.

"Sure. But how are you communicating with him?" Bazz asked.

Rose glanced up when the Doctor and Bazz came around the bed. Rose told Jack he was going to talk to Bazz and handed Bazz the mobile. She was about to get up when the Doctor put his foot lightly on her chest and grinned at her.

"What's this then?" Rose said.

"This is me pinning you to the floor, you helpless creature. Now what are you going to do about it?" the Doctor teased.

"Turn on the electricity to the suit and shock you."

"Ah, but that doesn't work any longer so think of something else before I put my foot in your stomach and make you spew up all the berries you ate today."

Rose glanced at Mara when she lay on her stomach and peeked over the edge.

"Don't do that, you'll make me spew berries on Mara," Rose said while Mara giggled. "She wants to stay with us as well, is that alright with you."

The Doctor leaned over to Mara and gave her a stern look.

"If you wish to be my companion, you must answer one question," he said to her.

"Okay," Mara said.

"What's two plus two?" the Doctor said.

"Four."

"Brilliant, you're a companion then," he said while Rose snickered.

Bazz finished talking to Jack and handed the phone back to the Doctor.

"I gave him all the information I could think of," Bazz said softly to the Doctor. "He might not land in this room but I said if he didn't, I'd find a way to get you outside to him so One Eye doesn't see."

"Brilliant. Thank you so much for everything," the Doctor said.

"Happy to help. Just…be sure to come back and get One Eye before he does any more damage. Now I better go back out there before he says something."

The Doctor quickly ended the call with Jack and put the mobile back in his trouser pocket as Bazz went out the door.

"Right then, I s'pose all we can do now is wait and hope that Jack doesn't appear right in Wonder Wanker's lap since that would be very awkward," the Doctor said as he sat back down on the bed.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter Thirty Three

About the Doctor ended the phone call, he and Rose stretched out side by side on the bed while Donna and Mara sat down in some leather chairs that were on the other side of the room. They chatted softly while Rose rolled onto her side and fingered the Doctor's lapel.

"Feels a bit strange knowing that we're married now," Rose said softly to him as she ran her fingers up and down his lapel.

"Yeah, never thought I'd be married to a doggie."

He sniggered when Rose swatted his chest and he brought her lips to his for a kiss. He rubbed his finger down her cheek when she finished.

"Gonna be crowded in the TARDIS," the Doctor said as Rose kept her face close to his. "Four people and you know Jack is gonna beg us to take him along. We might have to run to the very back of the TARDIS for some privacy."

"I've been thinking," Rose said, lowering her lips to his ear. "Mara's still a child and she doesn't have anyone. What about adopting her as our own then? Having a daughter?"

The Doctor glanced at Mara who was giggling at something Donna said. He grinned and looked back at Rose.

"Why, Mrs…um…Tor," he said while Rose giggled. "I believe you're trying to make me go domestic."

"Mrs. Tor?" Rose said with a wry grin.

"Well, I'm the Doctor so I s'pose Tor is my last name then," he said. "Now, about my accusation, Mrs. Tor, are you?"

"Mmm, maybe," Rose said before she kissed him. "You didn't object to the wedding, yeah?"

"I know, why is that? What's wrong with me? I think I'm going insane in my old age."

"I think you went insane ages ago," Rose said.

"Mmm, perhaps," the Doctor said.

He kissed her and looked at Mara. He called her over to them.

"Yes?" Mara said.

"We've been talking and we've decided that we would like to adopt you," the Doctor said.

Mara gave them a shocked look while Donna squealed with delight.

"Me?" Mara said, pointing to herself.

"Well, I don't see any other blue skinned girl around here and you're the only one answering to Mara, so I s'pose it's you," the Doctor said.

"Yeah, but…why would you want me?" Mara said.

"Well, the misses twisted my arm until it snapped and I said we could keep you," the Doctor said while Rose playfully swatted his chest. "But why wouldn't we want you? You've helped us out and you're a sweet little girl and if you stay with us, we can make sure that you're well taken care of and don't fall back into a life of prostitution. So, how 'bout it? Fancy us being your parents?"

"Yes," Mara said.

"Come here, daughter," the Doctor said, opening his arms wide.

Donna applauded when the Doctor and Rose hugged her. The Doctor looked at Donna.

"And of course, this is your aunt Donna now," he said to Mara. "Right, Donna?"

"With pleasure," Donna said as Mara went to hug her.

They looked at the door when it opened and the Alternate Doctor and Bazz stepped inside.

"Get up, all of you, you're going out to the barn," the Alternate Doctor said. "Bazz is getting his first crack at Rose and you're getting locked up in the stables so you won't be causing me any trouble."

"No, there has to be something else we can do besides this," the Doctor said as he and Rose sat up. "Just leave her alone."

"Get up off the bed and get your arse to the barn before I go get the sword and cut you to pieces myself," the Alternate Doctor said. "You're not giving anyone any trouble. Like I said, the whore's probably had more men than you can count so it won't matter if she has one more. Now move, before I turn the suit on!"

The Doctor feigned anger as he and Rose got up from the bed. The Alternate Doctor smirked at him and then gave him a challenging look when the Doctor stepped up to him.

"Problems?" the Alternate Doctor said with a smirk.

"No, but there'll be problems for you, just you wait," the Doctor said.

"Oh yes, I'm so scared," the Alternate Doctor said in a bored voice. "Get out of here before I make you regenerate."

The Doctor took Mara's hand and Donna followed Rose while Bazz led them out of the room.

"Have fun, Rose, let me know if it was good for you," the Alternate Doctor crowed as they went towards the front door.

"Please say we come back here after we get the TARDIS so I can ram my fist through his face, please, please, please?" Rose muttered to the Doctor as Bazz opened the door.

He led them outside and they headed towards the barn.

"Your friend is inside the barn," Bazz said in a low voice. "That's why I had to get you out of the house. He's waiting."

"Brilliant, so the other Doctor didn't see him?" the Doctor said softly.

"Don't think so. I stepped outside after telling One Eye I needed to check on the livestock and he appeared by the fence so I told him to go inside the barn and I'd bring you to him."

Bazz looked back as they entered the barn.

"NO, I WON'T DO IT, YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!"

They looked at Rose when she screamed out the door. She shrugged.

"Keeping up appearances."

"DAMN YOU, DOCTOR!" the Doctor yelled out the door. "There, keeping up appearances as well," he said when they laughed.

"Better not keep up appearances too much or he might want to come out here and watch," Bazz said.

He led them to the last stable on the left. He opened the door and grabbed the torch that was lying on a crate beside it. He turned it on and shined it at Jack who was leaning up against the back wall.

"Have you brought me the virgin?" Jack said, gesturing to Rose.

"You wish," Rose said before giving him a hug.

"Good thing you still had that mobile with you," Jack said as the Doctor gave him a hug. "And who are these lovely ladies?"

"This is Donna and this is our daughter, Mara," the Doctor said to him.

"Daughter? You didn't waste any time," Jack said. "And she seems to come out full grown too."

"We just adopted her a few minutes ago, she's been helping us and she's by herself so we decided to have her as our daughter," Rose said.

"Well, welcome to the family, Mara. Can I be Uncle Jack then?"

"Oh, I s'pose," the Doctor said.

Jack hugged Mara and then hugged Donna.

"Pleasure to meet you," he said, flashing her a charming grin.

"Stop it," the Doctor said when Donna blushed.

"I'm just saying hello. My God, you're paranoid," Jack said to him.

"Whatever, let's get back to our TARDIS before my other self cottons on," the Doctor said. "Bazz, thank you so much for all you've done. I just hope my other self doesn't give you any trouble for this."

"Are you kidding? Have you seen how tall and muscular I am. He might have a clever mind but I can still pound him into goo. Now get outta here before he finds out what happened."

"Okay, kiddies, time to hold on to Uncle Jack," Jack said after locking in the coordinates.

Rose instructed Mara and Donna on what to do as everyone got in close to Jack and took hold of him. Jack pushed a button and all of them vanished in a flash as Bazz watched.


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter Thirty Four

The moment they appeared on Pumice, Jack coughed at the sulfurous air.

"Damn, where'd that bastard take you to, Satan's holiday spot?" he said, looking around.

"Pretty much," the Doctor said, activating his bypass system. "And as you can see, we need to get back to our TARDIS before we choke. I think I know where we're at so follow me."

Everyone except the Doctor covered their noses and mouths with their hands while they followed him. The Doctor turned the corner at a large boulder and saw the rock corridor. He made a face when he saw Sabessa's body was about twenty feet from them.

"Friend of yours?" Jack said as everyone came out from behind the rock.

"Someone who allied herself with the other Doctor and paid the price for it. We can't do anything for her, just move on," the Doctor said as they walked towards Sabessa's body.

The Doctor glanced at Rose and noticed the anguished look on her face as she stared at Sabessa. He realized that he had forgotten to take that memory out of her mind and resolved to do it once they were back in the TARDIS. He held his wife's hand as they walked past the corpse.

Ten minutes later they were within sight of the TARDIS and the Doctor grinned, happy to see her again. Then suddenly, they froze when they heard a familiar wheezing sound behind him. The Doctor groaned.

"Jack, take the others to the TARDIS. I'm going to deal with this bastard once and for all. Hurry!" he said.

"Follow me, everyone," Jack said.

The Doctor turned to face the Alternate Doctor's TARDIS as the others sprinted toward the Doctor's TARDIS. The Doctor calmly waited while the TARDIS turned into the boulder and the Alternate Doctor opened the door. His face was twisted with rage and the Doctor smirked at him.

"Finally figure out what happened did you?" he said to the Alternate Doctor.

The Alternate Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS. In his hand was the samurai sword.

"I'm going to take care of you once and for all," the Alternate Doctor snarled at him.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing. Hope you didn't ram that through Bazz, he was ever so good to us."

"Bazz betrayed me!" the Alternate Doctor growled.

"Yeeeah, he did, didn't he? What'd you do, kill him?" the Doctor said.

"No, he…punched me and twisted my arm up behind my back and screamed at me to get out of his sight."

The Alternate Doctor glared at his double when he snickered at that.

"See, some people wise up to you," the Doctor said. "Then they don't wanna be around you any longer because you're too much even for them. Good on Bazz, I'm glad he stood up to you."

"He disabled my suit!" the Alternate Doctor said.

"Yeah, sorry about that. We got tired of you controlling Rose so Bazz did us a favor. Remind me to send him a bouquet for that."

"I'll send him a bouquet all right. A bouquet from your funeral," the Alternate Doctor said, raising the sword.

He tried to slash the Doctor's throat but he dodged and lunged for his double. The two of them began to fight each other, the Doctor grabbing a large rock as a weapon. The Alternate Doctor laughed mockingly when he saw him do that and tried to cut off his head. While they were fighting, everyone else was at the TARDIS watching them. Rose noticed Mara was about to run back and grabbed her arm.

"No, this is between the two of them," Rose said to her.

"But I can help, mum, I can shape shift into dad and confuse him."

"No, don't do anything until the Doctor tells you to do it. He won't want you in the middle of this and he'll be angry if you get hurt. He can take care of himself, trust me."

Mara nodded and Rose put her arm around her while they watched. Mara gasped when the Alternate Doctor nearly severed her father's leg but she cheered when the Doctor rushed him and smacked him hard in the face with the rock. The Alternate Doctor staggered backwards and the Doctor seized his wrist.

"Now, I'm gonna do to you what I was forced to do to Rose, only I won't stop before I break your wrist," the Doctor growled at him as he put pressure on it.

The Doctor was forced back when the Alternate Doctor tried to punch him and he let go of the wrist.

"You are so pathetic, how you ever managed to survive past your first life is beyond me," the Alternate Doctor growled as he swung his sword at the Doctor's head.

"Funny, I think the same thought when I see you but then again, I think that thought when I see the Master," the Doctor said as he ducked another swing of the sword.

He was about to rush the Alternate Doctor again when suddenly Jack rushed up behind his adversary and got the Alternate Doctor in a headlock.

"Rose was cautioning people not to interfere but I was never good at listening to people," Jack said as he applied pressure on the Alternate Doctor's neck. "Come on, Scarface, drop the sword or I cut off your oxygen."

"You idiot, I have a respiratory bypass system like he does. I don't need to breathe!" He said.

The Doctor noticed he was about to run the sword into Jack's eye. He kicked at his wrist and grinned when the sword finally flew out of his hand. Jack continued applying pressure on the Alternate Doctor's neck.

"I figured I'll send this little bastard into lullaby land and he can go to a nice prison planet," Jack said.

"No, he's going to be imprisoned on my TARDIS forever. I can't risk another prison planet," the Doctor said.

"You'll never take me alive," the Alternate Doctor groaned.

He stamped Jack's foot as hard as he could and Jack gasped when he stamped again. His arm loosened enough for him to get out of his arms and he instantly lunged at the Doctor, his hands on the Doctor's neck, intending to snap it. The Doctor gritted his teeth at the pressure and he tried to get the Alternate Doctor off him. Suddenly, the Alternate Doctor gasped and the Doctor looked over his shoulder at Jack. Jack had rammed the sword into the Alternate Doctor's back.

"Jack, you shouldn't have done that," the Doctor said.

"Sorry, I'm tired of the fucker. I want him dead," Jack said.

He pulled the sword out, intending to stab him again but the Alternate Doctor looked at his double.

"Show me mercy," he said to him as his body began to glow. "I will go with you but don't let him kill me."

"Doctor, you're making a mistake if you let him live," Jack said to him.

The Doctor clenched his jaw.

"No, let him live, get him into my TARDIS. My ship can contain him. I won't let you murder him, that's his way of doing things," the Doctor said. "Grab his hands and put his arms behind his back."

"You're making a mistake, Doc," Jack said, throwing down the sword and grabbing the Alternate Doctor's arms. "Okay, idiot, up! You wanted mercy so move!"

The Doctor helped his double to his feet and they helped him walk to the Doctor's TARDIS. The moment they got him inside, the Doctor ordered Jack to stand back and the TARDIS surrounded the dying Doctor with a force field. Mara walked to her father's side and asked what was happening.

"He's going to regenerate, love," the Doctor said. "Time Lords can change their bodies if they're dying and he's about to do that. Once that's finished, though, the TARDIS is taking him somewhere inside herself where he'll be watched over for the rest of his lives."

"Can she contain him?" Jack asked.

"I think so. My TARDIS can seal him away where he wouldn't be able to find his way out even if he did get free," the Doctor said.

They watched while the Alternate Doctor got to his feet. The Doctor smirked at him.

"Well, you won't be able to impersonate me anymore, eh?" he said to the Alternate Doctor.

"This isn't over, Doctor," the Alternate Doctor said.

Then his head flung back and golden light shot out of him. Mara watched in a stunned silence as the Alternate Doctor's body changed in front of her eyes. Then the light dissipated and they saw a younger man with brown hair that flopped down over the side of his face.

"So that's what I'll look like when I regenerate? I'm not ginger, when will I ever be ginger?" the Doctor moaned as his double examined himself for a moment.

Then the Alternate Doctor glared at his double and pointed his finger at him.

"This isn't over, Doc…"

He was taken away before he could finish his sentence. Mara stared at the space where he'd once been and looked at her father.

"Where'd he go?" she said.

"Oh, somewhere deep within the TARDIS where we'll probably never see him again," the Doctor said. "I'm sure he's somewhere where even if by some miracle he could get out he won't know where he is or where to go and I doubt the TARDIS will tell us where he is. But he's gone now so we won't have to worry about him any longer. We're safe. So…Jack, staying with us?"

"I can't, got my own people to look after. However, you better bring my niece for visits from time to time or I will come looking for you."

"Will you do something for me then? I can't leave the other TARDIS here where someone might find it. I'll take it onboard my TARDIS and tow it back to your Torchwood if you can store it for me?"

"Not a problem," Jack said.

"This doesn't mean you can use it," the Doctor said.

"I wasn't going to," Jack said, throwing up his hands while Rose laughed. "Are you ever gonna trust me completely?"

"Probably not, but give me another couple of centuries," the Doctor said.

Jack rolled his eyes while the Doctor gave him a cheesy grin. The Doctor patted him on the shoulder as he walked to his console.

The Alternate Doctor looked around him. He seemed to be in a field somewhere but he knew he was still on the Doctor's TARDIS. The sky above him looked real complete with birds and wind that blew his hair around his face. About twenty feet to his right was a small one story house and beyond that was a small pond that was ringed with trees.

"So…I'm in a prison that won't feel like a prison," the Alternate Doctor said.

He looked around for a door but didn't see any. He snorted.

"You can't keep me imprisoned forever, Doctor. I'll find a way to get out of this place and when I do, I'm coming for you. In the meantime, I'll see if I can find a change of clothes and something to eat and start planning for the future."

(A few days later…)

The Doctor and Rose lay side by side on beach towels on a beach on Mezzaluna while Donna and Mara splashed in the surf. The Doctor laid his head back on the towel, closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm air and the feel of the white sand running through his fingers. He opened his eyes when Rose leaned over him and smiled tenderly at her.

"Are you happy?" Rose asked.

"Very now that I don't have to worry about my double causing havoc in the universe," the Doctor said. "Why? Aren't you happy?"

"I am but…do you still want to be married? We can get it annulled if you want."

"Don't you want to be married?" the Doctor said with a frown.

"I do but…I figured you'd want to annul this as soon as you could. You know, it's all so domestic," Rose said.

"Divorce? And cause our daughter trauma and make her go through years of therapy?" he said. "Not a chance. I told you it doesn't matter one way or another if we're married or not, but since we are, why muck with it. I like calling you my wife, Mrs. Tor."

"Will you stop that?" Rose said, swatting his chest.

"What? You gotta have a last name, right? So I'll call you Rose Tor and our daughter is Mara Tor. That way you can sign your names to documents and make it legal."

He closed his eyes and basked in the sun for a moment but Rose tapped his shoulder again and he opened his eyes.

"Doctor, there's something else you should know," Rose said. "I think you need to check me."

"For what?" the Doctor said.

"Remember what the other Doctor said about not being sterile. I threw up this morning for no reason and I have a feeling…you know…"

The Doctor rose up on his elbow and looked at her stomach with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you think we should do?" Rose said. "Should I get rid of it if I'm pregnant?"

"Abortion?" the Doctor said, making a face. "Um…I really don't want to abort an innocent baby. The child has nothing to do with my double other than him being the father. But…he's me so…in a way, this could be a way for us to have a child…unless you want an abortion. It's your body."

"No, I'd rather not go through that. You're right, the child wouldn't be evil and we could bring him or her up properly so it wouldn't be."

"Well…" the Doctor said, lying back down on the towel. "I don't think this is an emergency situation. I think the scan can wait till we get back to the TARDIS, eh?"

Rose nodded and lay back down beside her husband. She snuggled close to the Doctor and he put his arm around her shoulders while they listened to their daughter playing with Donna in the water.

THE END.


End file.
